The Davincci
by clementine1
Summary: S/S - Things aren't always what they seem. Please R/R!!!
1. Default Chapter

The Davincci  
  
By clementine  
  
Disclaimer - None of these characters are mine. No really, it's true.  
  
A/N - I hope you like it.  
  
*****************  
  
The Warehouse - meeting place of Sydney and Vaughn ~  
  
"Do you have any idea what's on the disk?" Vaughn asked, his head down, taking notes.  
  
She shook her head. "No. When I entered the conference room it looked like they were discussing a mathematical configuration of some type of landmark. I can't be sure it had any relation to this mission, though. They didn't continue their conversation after they saw me."  
  
"Interesting," he remarked, looking up. "Well, we're going to want a copy of this disk so we can analyze it ourselves. Give me the scope of the mission and I'll see what I can come up with."  
  
****************  
  
Flashback to a.m. conference meeting at SD-6 ~  
  
Sloane, Sark, and Sydney are seated around the conference table.  
  
"Retrieving the disk will be complicated," Sloane explained.  
  
"Why?" Sydney asked, looking up. "Will security be a problem?"  
  
"Security measures will be in place, but that isn't our greatest concern. It's imperative to future operations that we protect the sanctity of Mr. Sark's cover. In order to do so, we've devised a rather elaborate plan to steal the disk, copy it, render it illegible and then return it to its place all within the timeframe Sark meets with Korin. Sydney, you will be handling the disk, Sark will handle Korin."  
  
Sydney looked briefly over at Sark and he met her gaze. She quickly turned her attention back to Sloane.  
  
"The meeting will be held at the Chateau Davincci," he continued, "Korin's favorite getaway. The Davincci is an exclusive resort catering to the various whims and fetishes of its members. Very private, very discreet. Even we don't know a whole lot of what goes on there. I'm not sure we want to. Sydney, you will be accompanying Mr. Sark as his guest. Mr. Sark?"  
  
"Yes," Sark straightened slightly as he began to speak, "when Mr. Korin made me the offer to purchase the disk he extended an invitation to spend the evening at The Chateau Davincci as well. And while I make it a point never to mix business with pleasure it came to me that this could be an opportunity to infiltrate their security with little suspicion. I have worked up what I believe to be a viable mission profile. Sydney, you will be accompanying me as my girlfriend, .. of sorts."  
  
"You're what?"  
  
He continued, ignoring her. "While I am meeting with Mr. Korin, you will break into the safe located in a private office he maintains there. This is where he keeps the disk. You'll make a copy of it and erase the original. Marshall has developed a computer virus you'll then install in his computer that will muddle up his entire system. He will believe the information to have been lost and that will be the end of our transaction. Any modifications to this plan we can make on point."  
  
Sloane picked it up from there, "Sydney, Marshall will get with you on tech, all other information will be loaded onto your panel by the time you leave. You can study it on route. You leave this afternoon. Sark will have the lead on this one. Any questions?"  
  
All eyes turned to Sydney. She shook her head no.  
  
"Good." Sloane excused them. "That will be all."  
  
****************  
  
Back at the warehouse ~  
  
"He wants you to pose as his what?" Vaughn asked, incredulous.  
  
She rolled her eyes. "His girlfriend. I know. Let's hope the food is good."  
  
"Well, from what I hear the place isn't exactly known for its food."  
  
"So I've heard. What do you know about it?"  
  
"Basically the same as you, only maybe a bit more. The Davincci is known for providing private entertainment to very wealthy men. Fantasy fulfillment leaning towards the depraved..bizarre. Receiving an invitation to the Davincci is known as an enormous compliment in the business sect, given only to a select few."  
  
"Sounds like Sark runs with the big dogs," she joked lightly.  
  
"Apparently. Will Dixon be your back-up?"  
  
"No backup. Sark feels it would be better to rely only on each other. He thinks it'll arouse less suspicion."  
  
Vaughn sighed heavily. "Well, I can't say I like it, but we have to work with what we've got." He stood up and began putting his notes away. "I'll work up your counter-mission and get back to you. What time's your flight?"  
  
"Three."  
  
"Okay, I'll get back with you before then."  
  
****************  
  
Sydney went home to pack. Sark had insisted he provide all mission specific garments. That didn't leave much for her to bring, just her personal incidentals and maybe some comfortable traveling clothes. He'd also stipulated that she would be leaving the her hair natural. This made her uncomfortable and she had told him so. His cryptic answer was that this sentiment would only heighten the effect of her cover. 'Whatever that means,' She'd thought to herself, remembering their earlier conversation .....  
  
"Don't worry," he'd assured her, sensing her hesitation, "you'll be scripted."  
  
"I don't do 'scripted'," she snapped.  
  
"Alright Sydney," he sighed, relenting, "but I will have a general schematic you will need to follow in order for this to work."  
  
"I think I can figure it out."  
  
"Sydney," he explained irritably, "I am well acquainted with Mr. Korin. I know how he thinks. The Chateau Davincci is a.. how shall I say it? It's a unique environment. The men who patronize it are a 'unique' breed. You'll have to trust me on this one, I know what I'm doing."  
  
"Trust you? That's almost funny." She snickered. "Almost."  
  
He eyed her seductively. "You may find you actually like working with me," he teased.  
  
"I seriously doubt that," she spat, turning on her heels and storming away, leaving him to smile to himself in satisfaction of having gotten to her.  
  
"Oh Sydney," he whispered, "this is going to be fun".  
  
****************  
  
When she walked through the door of her apartment, Will greeted her with a beer and a smile.  
  
"Hey," he said, "I was just thinking about you. Francie and I are gonna catch a movie later, wanna come?"  
  
"I'd love to, but I can't." She said irritably, accepting the proffered beer, "I have to go pack."  
  
"Where are you off to this time?" He asked, "Or do I want to know?"  
  
"You definitely don't want to know," she answered, trudging down the hall back to her bedroom. "I don't even want to know."  
  
Will followed behind and sat on her bed to talk while she packed.  
  
"You don't look happy." He observed, and then asked tentatively, "Is Sark going to be there?"  
  
"Yeah," she sighed, "you could say that."  
  
"Does Vaughn know?"  
  
"Yes, he knows, but Will ..."  
  
He could see the concern in her eyes. "I know, it's better I don't know," he stopped her. "I just want you to be safe."  
  
An hour and a half later when Sydney got the call, she was packed and ready to go. She hugged Will goodbye and left a note to Francie about canceling their gym date in the morning. She wasn't looking forward to this mission, but she wanted to get it over with.  
  
****************  
  
Back at the warehouse ~  
  
"Okay," Vaughn began, "this is what we're going to do. You'll make an additional copy of the disk for us and after you leave Korin's office you'll pass our copy to an agent who will be in the room located directly across from yours."  
  
"How will you manage that?" She asked, taken aback.  
  
"Leave it to me.. Actually," he clarified, "I'm still working on it."  
  
Sydney smiled. "Sounds good."  
  
She turned and started to leave. "I'll see you when I get back."  
  
"Oh, Syd?"  
  
"Yeah?" She answered, turning around.  
  
"About working with him, are you worried?"  
  
"I can handle it," she said quietly.  
  
He nodded. "Good luck in Austria."  
  
She started to flash him her special "for-Vaughn-only-Sydney-smile" when she remembered and quickly lowered it. "Thanks."  
  
****************  
  
From the warehouse Sydney headed directly to the small airport where Sark kept his private jet. Since she was to be traveling as his girlfriend, there was no need for them to travel separately. She'd wondered what profile she would have in a place of that repute. She was reasonably sure Sloane would never sanction any action on her part that fell along the lines of requiring her to.. would he? No, Sloane had an affection for Sydney that likened to a daughter. She felt confident he wouldn't allow Sark to place her in an awkward position. She'd just have to wait until they were on the plane to receive the full schematics. At least for once she wouldn't be riding on military transport. And while Sloane usually arranged for her to fly commercial, a private jet could be a nice change. As long as she didn't have to make idle conversation.  
  
She didn't. After reading over the profile, which seemed simple enough, Sark had suggested she sleep, which she did. Surprisingly, Sark himself piloted the plane for several hours after which he too slept in a private sleeping quarter located in the rear of the plane.  
  
Just prior to landing he emerged from his room, freshly showered and changed. He was gratified to find Sydney also ready and looking every the part he'd outlined her to play. More so really, it was as if she'd read his mind. He marveled at her ability to grasp the necessary subtleties in a character so well that it caused even he to momentarily doubt she could ever be any different from the person she appeared to be at that moment. It impressed him. Even her expression was softened to match her persona.  
  
****************  
  
Upon landing they were met by Mr. Korin's personal driver who expressed his employer's "sincere wishes" that they enjoy their stay and that he looked forward to meeting with Mr. Sark at the appointed time. Sydney only smiled shyly, her eyes turned down, holding on to Sark's arm. The driver, for his entire attempt at discretion, watched intently through the rearview mirror, throughout the drive, making conversation between them all but impossible. It was obvious to Sydney he was looking to report any anomalies back to his employer. Sark didn't seem to mind. He immediately pulled out his laptop and began working, all but ignoring her in the manner of a man used to her presence and not feeling the need to entertain her. Sydney passed the time looking out the window taking in the countryside. Occasionally she would turn to find him watching her with a small, affectionate smile on his face. She thought it was odd how it made her feel.. safe, protected. 'What am I thinking?' She chastised herself. Then she would smile back demurely, reflexively, as she instinctively felt he would want her to.  
  
When they arrived at The Davincci they were met by various hotel staff as well as the proprietor, a man Sark apparently knew. He seemed delighted to see Sark and he told him so.  
  
"Mr. Sark," he reached out to him with a firm handshake, "I was so pleased, very pleased, you finally accepted my invitation to Chateau Davincci. When Mr. Korin informed me you would be staying, well, it is an honor Sir."  
  
'Good grief', Sydney thought from inside the limo, 'he's fawning all over him.'  
  
"Thank you Maurice," Sark replied.  
  
"I have, of course, prepared your room to your exact specifications. If I can offer you any, uh....service, or if you have any special requests, I assure you the 'Davincci' is a place where a man may find any entertainment he desires. You have only to ask, and it will be provided. Should you desire, a partner or partners are available, in accordance to your preferences of course." The man gave him a conspirator smile. "I think you will be very satisfied with the services we offer."  
  
Sydney thought he seemed somewhat overly enthusiastic about his "services".  
  
"That's very gracious Maurice," Sark responded easily, "but I have taken the liberty of bringing along a guest." He turned back to the car. "Enya?" he called to her.  
  
He reached his hand into the car and she took it, allowing him to usher her out. He was chivalrous and gentle and she even feigned a small blush to go along with her shy smile as Sark introduced her.  
  
"Maurice," He said tersely, drawing her closer to him and draping a protective arm about her waist, "this is Enya."  
  
Maurice was obviously very taken aback. He probably had never seen Sark with anyone other then his personal security detail before.  
  
"What a lovely surprise," he stammered.  
  
"Yes," Sark responded softly, looking over at her "isn't she though?"  
  
Then he paused, searching her face, and he looked at her with such love that Sydney was momentarily stunned; as was Maurice, who just starred at them in astonishment. This was obviously not the Sark he knew. He didn't seem to know how to respond, so, collecting himself, he went to embrace her in the European fashion.  
  
Sark's expression changed dramatically then as he stepped forward. Sydney turned her face into his chest. "Maurice," he said severely, "do not touch her. I do not like her to be touched or spoken to by anyone other than myself. Do you understand?"  
  
Maurice stepped back immediately. He wasn't perturbed by this little outburst. He understood perfectly. If anything, it made him more comfortable to see Sark wasn't as doting as he first appeared but was in fact as depraved as the rest of them. In fact, it gratified him immensely. He was used to seeing the deviant side of the wealthy clients of the Davincci. That was what he catered to. Yes, he understood completely.  
  
"Of course, Mr. Sark, please accept my apologies," he purred. "I meant no offense to your lovely......uh, to your guest." He flashed him a knowing smile. "I am here merely to serve. If there is anything I can get for her- "  
  
Sark cut him off. "Whatever Enya requires, I alone will provide." Then he added, "You will inform your staff she isn't to be disturbed in any way."  
  
"Of course, Sir. Once again, my apologies."  
  
************************ 


	2. chapter 2

Chapter 2  
  
Sydney wanted to laugh; it was almost sweet - in a sick, co-dependent, psycho kind of way. Sark was really good at his role. She was impressed. She wondered how he could be so effective if it was so far removed from who he really was. But then she managed it, she never faltered. She maintained the persona of a prized plaything as if it was all she'd ever been.  
  
It made it easier to keep her gaze averted, concentrating on the folds of her dress. Looking at the dress, the one Sark had chosen for her, she had been pleasantly surprised. It was lovely and soft and feminine. It wasn't frilly, thank God, but classic and understated. It was the color and fabric that set it apart more than anything else. It was a color she would never had thought to wear. A silky, creamy, blush color somewhere between a peach and a very light pink. It was a color she had seen before but she couldn't quite place it. She guessed the fabric to be a mix of chiffon and silk. It hugged her figure meticulously as if it had been designed uniquely for her, and even though it wasn't an overtly sexy dress, the way the soft fabric flowed along her body when she moved caused every man in the vicinity to take notice of her. The skirt fell to just below the knees emphasizing her long, shapely legs. The shoes matched perfectly. The heels weren't especially high, though the 40's era style ankle strap lent an air of naughtiness that could be picked up by those discerning. He'd insisted she keep her hair natural, and now she saw why. The color and texture of the dress complimented her exactly. Any other style would have caused her to look unnatural and posed. She had ventured to put a soft wave into it leaving it down falling softly about her shoulders. As requested, she wore very little make-up and no jewelry save for one small beautiful pink diamond ring.  
  
It had annoyed her how specific Sark had been about her appearance. The result she now realized was dead on accurate for their ruse. What disturbed her most was that she felt genuinely pretty for the first time in a long while. The big drawback was she also looked exactly like who she was, Sydney Bristow. She couldn't help wondering why he'd think that was a good thing.  
  
Maurice excused himself to retrieve the keys to their suite and then he personally escorted them up the grand stairway and through an elegant corridor to their door. Along the way Sark kept a protective eye over her, leading her by his arm. Opening the door for them Maurice briefly listed some of the room's features and asked Sark if he would require anything to enhance their stay.  
  
Gazing over at her, he responded vaguely, "I have all that I need."  
  
"I must say, Sir," Maurice ventured, "this is a side of you I would not of guessed. I will notify Mr. Korin you have arrived." Then he quickly left, closing the door softly behind him. It was barely noticeable his pressing on a seam in the wall as he walked out.  
  
At the closing of the door Sark pulled Sydney forcefully to him, pushing her back against the wall, and began devouring her neck with his mouth. His hands roaming the length of her body and coming up roughly through her hair. In return she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed herself up against him, discreetly turning the ring around on her finger at the same time and pressing the stone, emitting a small signal.  
  
"We're clear." She informed him, stiffening and pulling back.  
  
"So soon?" He teased, straightening himself and stepping away from her.  
  
That's when Sydney took in the astounding beauty of the room. It had been decorated in the Baroque fashion of golds and creams. Candles had been lit throughout the suite causing it to virtually glow. There was a private sitting area overlooking a terrace with a view of the neighboring forest and a fire had been laid and was softly burning in the far corner opposite the bed in the adjoining bedroom. There was only one bed Sydney could see and it appeared to be enormous. It was all soft downy linens and a sea of pillows....very inviting. Taking it all in, that was when she saw it. The room was filled with "Angel's Blush" Camilla's. The same as those from her own garden. It dawned on her suddenly that that was where she'd known the color from, the flower. It must surely be a coincidence that it also happened to be her favorite. He couldn't possibly have known. Or could he? He could of asked Marshall. She remembered telling him once, a long time ago....  
  
He appeared sheepishly pleased when she looked suddenly at him in surprise, and she was embarrassed to realize how pleased she must have looked in return. To his credit he said nothing.  
  
She quickly turned away to recover herself. This was insane. Of course it only followed their ruse that he should request something special to please his 'guest'. 'What was I thinking?' She chastised herself. 'It's a coincidence. I need to focus. It's just a beautiful room after all. In a beautiful chateau on the outskirts of Austria......,' her mind wandered. 'A resort which caters to rich men's fantasies,' she quickly reminded herself, 'generally leaning to the cruel and perverse...'  
  
Okay, that last thought sobered her all right.  
  
Sydney was startled out of her thoughts by a loud popping sound and turned to find Sark uncorking a chilled bottle of champagne.  
  
"What do you think you're doing?" She demanded, hands on her hips.  
  
He finished pouring out two glasses and then he turned to her with a soft smile on his face, handing one of them to her. "I'm toasting to my good fortune of working with one of the most talented and beautiful women in the world," he said, flirtatiously.  
  
Sydney just rolled her eyes and put the glass down on the table. "We have to get ready, where's the gear?" She asked, searching the room with her eyes.  
  
He smirked. "In the other room, next to the bed."  
  
Sydney went in and sat down on the corner of the bed and began taking inventory of the case.  
  
Sark kicked off his shoes and reclined on the bed next to her, watching her.  
  
"What are you doing?" She asked, not looking up.  
  
"I'm relaxing."  
  
"No you aren't. You're watching me."  
  
"I find watching you relaxing."  
  
************************ 


	3. chapter 3

Chapter 3  
  
The meeting was set for 9pm. At 8:30 Sydney came out of the bedroom dressed and ready, the complacent expression drawn back across her face as if it'd never left.  
  
Sark eyed her carefully, but made no comment.  
  
"What? Is there a problem?" She asked.  
  
"No, nothing. It's good." He answered quietly, looking away and placing his glass on a nearby table.  
  
"Good?"  
  
He turned to her. His eyes traveled up and down her form. "That look suits you." He said finally.  
  
Sydney rolled her eyes. "I should of guessed you would get into this dominant male/submissive female bit," she observed wryly, "it's so you."  
  
"It's so me?" Sark countered. "Interesting observation since you haven't taken the time to learn the first thing about me. For your information, I don't 'get into' anything of the sort. I was simply thinking that you look astoundingly pretty in that nightgown, in this light. The color brings out your complexion. I had thought it might. I'm sorry I mentioned it. It won't happen again, I assure you. Now, shall we get started?" He demanded irritably, waving his hand in the direction of the bedroom.  
  
Sydney nodded, angry with herself for engaging in personal conversation with him at all. She had long ago decided it would be best if she didn't interact with him in any way other than professionally and then only when ordered to do so. She knew better. "Fine," she sighed heavily, "let's get this over with."  
  
They walked over to the bed and she sat down on the edge in front of him.  
  
"How do you sleep?" He asked her.  
  
"On my side."  
  
"Left or right?"  
  
"Left."  
  
"Fine. Lie down as you would normally." He instructed her.  
  
She lay down on her left side with one hand under the pillow. Looking thoughtfully down at her, he reached under her pillow and pulled her arm further up so her hand reached the antique frame. Without taking his eyes off hers, he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. He locked one end to her wrist and the other to the bed frame. Gripping the second cuff, he pressed hard against the frame and rubbed it several times back and forth. Pulling out a set of keys, he took one off the ring and set it next to her on the pillow. He pocketed the other. Reaching under his coat behind his back, he pulled out a gun. Raising it up to show her, he placed it under the bed directly beneath her.  
  
"If you need to shoot me, Sydney, please try to be considerate."  
  
"I'll try." She deadpanned.  
  
"I'll be meeting with Korin in his office suite. He should have arrived by now, so I'll be going. From prior dealings with him I estimate you will have 15 minutes from start to finish. We will maintain our coms but obviously I won't be able to speak to you directly. Now, should he suspect, you know what to do. Stick to the profile exactly. I will be depending upon you to do so." He paused. "Hopefully we won't have any problems. Ideally, we'll simply meet back here, I'll feign that I've been called away to business, and we'll be on our way. Are you ready?"  
  
"I'm ready."  
  
"Good luck Sydney." He said seriously.  
  
****************  
  
On his way to Korin's suite, Sark was pulled away from his thoughts by a small cry. Looking around he spied a young girl being led by the hand down the hall to one of the rooms. Sark's blood went cold. The girl couldn't have been more than six or seven years old. She wasn't resisting, just sobbing quietly. She knew well where she was going. Sark gazed after her. She had chestnut hair, .... like Sydney, he thought. But he had somewhere to be right now, and he continued on his way.  
  
***************  
  
Upon his arrival at Korin's suite, Sark passed a man coming out. The man nodded to him and Sark nodded back. Sark recognized him from photos he'd seen in the SD-6 databases. That was how he had learned the man was Korin's contact in supplying arms to various radical military groups.  
  
"Was that General Slovak I passed earlier?" Sark inquired after the requisite pleasantries were expressed.  
  
"Yes it was." Korin was pleased Sark had noticed. "He comes here periodically as a guest of mine. It's a perk of our relationship that I provide him with access to entertainment that, outside the boundaries of The Chateau Davincci would be, how shall I say it....., frowned upon."  
  
"It's been rumored he has a thing for little girls," Sark ventured, putting two and two together.  
  
"Distasteful compulsion, it will be his undoing someday." Korin confided.  
  
A knowing look passed between the two men. Sark didn't try to hide his admiration. "Congratulations. That's quite a coup," he complimented him.  
  
"As was the disk I've procured for you." Korin reminded him, getting down to business.  
  
"Yes, it seems you may becoming even more useful than we'd anticipated."  
  
****************  
  
Sydney stayed where she was a full minute before using the tiny key to unlock the cuffs. She began to undo her wrist but then thought better of it and simply detached them from the frame. She leapt up and pulled a bag out from underneath the bed. She slipped on her shoes and tossed the nightgown off over her head. Underneath she wore a black bodysuit. Slipping out onto the terrace, she took out a length of rope and tossed one end up and looped it around a sconce attached to the roof. She scrambled up it and over the ledge. Jogging across the rooftop and peering over the opposite edge of the building, she could see there were only two guards stationed below and they were engaged in some type of debate and smoking. Reaching into the sack slung over her shoulder Sydney took out the propulsion cable.  
  
****************  
  
Flashback to Marshall's briefing earlier back at SD-6~  
  
"What you have here is a simple propulsion cable," he explained to her, "but with a twist. Prior to now you needed a target point to which the cable could wrap itself around. It wasn't always practical." He flashed her a commissary look. "So now, I've devised what I like to call the 'Marshall Butterfly Propulsion Cable'."  
  
Sydney had to hold herself not to laugh. He was so proud.  
  
"Well," he continued, "I'm still working on the name. What it does is, instead of needing something to attach itself around, it now carries it's own attachment in the form of a butterfly clip." He held up the clip to emphasize his point. "The cable enters the structure, in this case a stone wall, and snaps tight with the butterfly catch opening in the wall structure itself anchoring the cable to the wall with a weight capacity of approximately 473 lbs. Give or take a few. Simply hold the device over the edge of the building, angle it to ensure the proper direction and press this release. Voila! You'll be walking the tightrope." He smiled to her; apparently the mental image pleased him. "Of course you may want to just hang on it and cross that way."  
  
****************  
  
Back to Sydney~  
  
Pulling out the small key to the handcuffs, she stuck it between her teeth. She placed the empty cuff around the cable and lowered herself down on to it, sliding silently along the wire to the adjacent wing across the courtyard. She extended her legs in front of her to break her impact against the wall. Landing just inches from the window, she peered in from the side to make sure it was empty. Seeing it was, she reached over and pulled the window open. Taking the key from her mouth she gripped the cable with her free hand and unlocked the cuff connecting her to the wire. Gripping the window frame for leverage she swung her legs over the sill and entered the room silently. She could hear Sark's voice coming from behind the door. They had already begun to talk business. She would have to hurry. She reached up and turned on her com unit.  
  
"I'm in." She whispered.  
  
Sark responded by upping his voice an octave. Indiscernible to the man he was speaking with, whom Sydney guessed to be Korin, but enough to signal to Sydney that he'd heard her. She had no problem finding the safe. It was exactly where Sark said it would be. She got right to work taking the combination decoder out of her bag and placing it against the dial.  
  
****************  
  
Flash back to Marshall's briefing back at SD-6~  
  
"Looks just like a cell phone," he was saying, now hardly able to control his excitement. "Right? Well actually it is, but I just threw that in as a bonus." He smiled specifically to Sydney. "In reality it's a metal detector, or rather an amplified version of that. Now you just place the speaker outlet over the dial - this part right here, oh.... you know what the speaker looks like, huh? Okay, then you press the *star* button and this baby will do the rest for you. The locking mechanism on the safe is a set of wheels. The trick is to line up each notch with contact points. Now, once each notch is lined up part of the combination will appear. When they all line up and the combination is revealed, the "phone" will then dial up the combination and Bip Bop Bang, the door will open." He mimed a door opening with his hands to give her a visual. "It should take about 30 seconds. Well, 29 really. But who's counting. Oh, I guess I did. We'll just say 30 to be on the safe side."  
  
****************  
  
Back to Sydney~  
  
29 seconds later, the door swung open. She pulled out the disk and took it over to the computer, slipping it into the reader. She arranged the duplicator on top of the monitor and inserted the jack into his hard drive. Then she inserted a disk into her reader. When that disk was completed, she pulled it out and reached into her pocket, pulled out a second disk, and repeated the operation. Then she erased the original. Collecting her gear and replacing it into her bag she quickly typed the IP address, containing the virus, onto his keyboard and hit enter. She heard voices approaching. Sark asked about someone connected to Korin and she realized he was trying to stall.  
  
"I'm not finished," she hissed.  
  
Reaching up to his com as if to scratch his face, he answered her and Korin both -  
  
".. That's too bad."  
  
She wouldn't have time to see if the virus was successful. At the sound of them approaching the door she turned and lept up onto the edge of the window opening her cuff and just looping it around the wire in time. She jumped out into the night, propelling herself across the courtyard along the cable. Unfortunately, she launched herself a little too quickly and she wasn't able to slow her stop enough, causing her to slam into the opposite wall, her face taking the worst of it. The key slipped out of her mouth on impact and she could only watch it fall. She searched franticly for the guards but as luck would have it they'd already moved off to patrol the grounds. Sark heard the impact and her whimper in his ear and he inwardly cringed. He could do nothing to help her.  
  
"How have you found the working with the F.A.C.?" He addressed Korin, and he hoped Sydney as well.  
  
"Ah, they're a volatile group."  
  
"I'm okay." She managed in response.  
  
"Yes, my own interaction with them has been limited, but my employer has nothing but the greatest respect for their operation." She could hear Sark's voice simultaneously talking to both of them. She understood, 'I copy, I'll try to stall, and, I know you can do it'.  
  
All at once Korin began yelling.  
  
"What is this? Someone has been in here."  
  
Korin turned to the computer and banged at the keys. The screen was blank. He found the disk in the reader and he knew.  
  
"Someone has been in here just now, they've destroyed the disk."  
  
Sydney could hear the cursing and barking of orders. Sark remained silent. She reached into her belt and pulled out a thin stick of metal and began picking the lock on her cuffs. Her adrenalin now kicking into high gear.  
  
"Check the rooms, check the halls," He turned to Sark. "You don't move." He ordered.  
  
"I wouldn't dream of it." Sark replied evenly.  
  
"The window is open! Get a flashlight."  
  
Locating one, they flashed it out and up until they spotted the cable.  
  
"He escaped out here. He couldn't of gone far. Call the guards, tell them to kill anything that moves." Korin instructed them.  
  
"Sir, look!" Korin's guard pointed the light to far end of cable. Along the roofline they spied Sydney's shadow just ducking out of sight.  
  
"He's over there" he shouted, "quickly! Don't let him escape!"  
  
Guards were running now in all directions, covering the grounds. On the rooftop Sydney yanked her rope back out of the bag and tossed it over the South edge of the building, attaching the end to a pipe. Then she turned and ran the opposite direction to the North end and shimmied down the drainpipe. When she got down to the second floor she slipped silently into their darkened suite. She immediately set about dismantling the equipment.  
  
****************  
  
Korin's office~  
  
Korin looked up at Sark with a steely expression. "You! It was you. I knew something felt wrong. You are not the same." He accused.  
  
"Mr. Korin, I don't know what you're referring to but I can assure you my employer will tolerate no disrespect." Sark reminded him.  
  
"You've never brought a guest before. You work alone. You never travel without security. You, Mr. Sark are as predictable as rain. Where is the woman?" He demanded.  
  
"Which woman?" Sark asked in a confused tone.  
  
"The woman traveling with you. You are not a man to engage in the activities offered here. Such a weakness is not in your character. I make it a priority to study my friends as well as my enemies." He said, emphasizing the word 'enemies.'  
  
"A woman is hardly a weakness. A diversion perhaps. Regardless, she is not your concern. I came here as an invited guest and I resent what you're implying. I have come to make a purchase. Why would I destroy that which my employer has dispatched me to buy?"  
  
"Why indeed?"  
  
"Mr. Korin, I think it is time for me to leave now."  
  
Upon Korin's signal his guards pulled out their guns and leveled them at Sark.  
  
"Good idea." Korin countered. "We will all go with you. I want to see this woman of yours."  
  
****************  
  
Once the equipment was dismantled and disguised, Sydney pulled the disks out of her pocket and then slipped out of her bodysuit. She kicked her shoes off and knocked them under the bed. She could hear commotion through her com but there was too much static and it was difficult to make out exactly what was happening. Korin was barking orders and she detected movement. She lunged for her nightgown. She needed to pass the disk.  
  
'Stick to the profile exactly' Sydney remembered Sark instructing her, 'I will be depending on you ...'  
  
"Yeah, well, you just don't know all of the profile," she thought to herself as she crept over to the door and turned the handle, silently opening it. The door directly opposite hers did the same and suddenly, unexpectedly, Sydney was face to face with Vaughn. She smiled at the surprise. Vaughn started to smile too until he took in her appearance. She hadn't thought of what she must look like. He took in the filmy pink negligee, the disheveled hair, her welted cheek, her tiny bare feet; He blinked in shock at the sight of handcuffs dangling from her wrist. It was as if time momentarily stood still, and yet it was instantaneous. Angry voices could be heard approaching and with simultaneous panic they both ducked back into their rooms before being seen.  
  
Sark was the one talking. "You will find nothing." He was saying loudly.  
  
Sydney raced for the bedroom, her hand just locking the cuff to the frame as the door to their suite swung open.  
  
"Where is she?" Korin demanded.  
  
"She is sleeping, where I left her." Sark answered calmly, though he was clearly annoyed.  
  
"Then you won't mind letting us have a look at her."  
  
"I do mind, but it appears I haven't a choice in the matter."  
  
Sydney heard him walk over to the door and quietly open it. He paused in the doorway and turned to them. "You will wait here." He instructed. "I will get her."  
  
He opened the door wide and walked over to the bed where she lay as he left her. Her eyes were closed. She appeared to be sleeping. He knelt down beside the bed and softly caressed her cheek with his finger. His eyes adored her and his voice was very soft.  
  
"Enya. Enya darling, I need you to wake up."  
  
He slipped his fingers through her hair and moved it out of her face. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled brightly at him.  
  
"Enya, there are some gentlemen here that need to see you."  
  
Sydney didn't speak but her eyes got very wide and she turned to look. They were watching her from the doorway. If it had been anyone else but Sark they would of entered, but they understood that Sark would accept only so much. She looked back at him.  
  
"It'll be okay, I promise." He said gently.  
  
He stretched out his hand and she grasped it to pull herself into a sitting position on the edge of the bed. She lowered her eyes in the direction of the gun hidden below but a flick of his eyes told her no. She began to get up, and then sat back down suddenly, looking up at him quizzically.  
  
"Of course. I'm sorry, I forgot."  
  
He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a small silver key. He pulled away her pillow and unlocked her arm from the cuff. Then he helped her up from the bed and steered her towards the other room.  
  
Displayed for them, they looked her over. Sydney kept her gaze down.  
  
"Reports of her beauty were not exaggerated I see," Korin openly bated him. "Tell me, Mr. Sark, where did you find such a charming creature?"  
  
"If you must know," Sark responded icily, "she was a gift."  
  
Pretending not to be impressed, though he clearly was, Korin instructed one of his men to lift up her face. Looking to Sark, the guard was hesitant but quickly moved to do as he was told.  
  
"Touch her and you will die." Sark warned.  
  
The guard stopped. He looked back at Korin.  
  
"Do it." Korin ordered.  
  
Purposely looking away from Sark this time, the guard walked over to Sydney and carefully tilted her chin up with one finger. Her cheek was red and swollen. Sydney didn't look up, but kept her eyes to the floor.  
  
"And how did she just happen to get this?" Demanded Korin.  
  
"My personal affairs are none of yours." Sark responded evenly. "Now step back."  
  
The guard did so without question this time.  
  
The room was silent for several moments. All that could be heard was the crackling of the fire in the other room. Korin seemed to be weighing the matter over and Sark didn't rush him. Neither he, nor Sark, ever took their eyes off one another. A cell phone ringing broke the silence. Korin reached into his pocket and put it to his ear. After listening for several seconds he said, "Continue searching the grounds." He shut it off and replaced it to his pocket.  
  
"It seems I may have been mistaken." Korin relented. "It appears that a rope has been found leading from the roof down to the South grounds. It is possible the perpetrator used this to escape." After a moment he added. "My apologies to yourself and the lady."  
  
Sark didn't reply.  
  
"Apparently our transaction will have to wait until I can sort this out." Korin continued. "I assume you will be leaving first thing in the morning? I believe I can be in touch within a few days," he offered. "I will get the disk back, Mr. Sark." He added pointedly.  
  
Again Sark didn't respond. He seemed to be thinking it over.  
  
"I think I'll wait," he announced a moment later, to the utter surprise of everyone in the room, especially Sydney.  
  
"Here at The Davincci?" Korin asked, taken aback, and then stammered, "That's very generous of you Mr. Sark. Once again you surprise me. I will be contacting you soon."  
  
Korin and his men turned to leave.  
  
"One moment."  
  
They all turned.  
  
Sark turned to Sydney. "Go back to bed now." He instructed her gently. "I will be in shortly."  
  
She smiled gratefully and nodded her head as she turned and went back into the bedroom.  
  
"We aren't finished," he declared, the moment the door was shut. Then he whipped out his gun and shot Korin's guard between the eyes, killing him instantly. The man slumped noiselessly to the ground. Korin and his remaining guard instinctively drew back, stunned.  
  
"I warned you if he touched her he would die."  
  
Korin panicked. "Surely, Mr. Sark, you can understand our need to verify -  
  
"I understand nothing of the sort." Sark cut him off. "I think you need to remember who you're dealing with here, Mr. Korin."  
  
A mixture of fear and recognition slowly crept across Korin's face. Perhaps Sark wasn't so different after all.  
  
**************** 


	4. chapter 4

Chapter 4  
  
It'd been a few minutes since Sydney had heard Korin and his men leave and Sark still hadn't come to her. She stepped out of the bedroom and saw him standing outside on the terrace looking out into the night. He appeared to be deep in thought. Sydney wasn't sure if he was even aware she was there.  
  
"Sark?" She called quietly.  
  
He inhaled a deep breath of air but didn't respond.  
  
"Sark?" She called again, this time walking up behind him.  
  
Without turning he said in a low voice, "we have a problem."  
  
"I know. You told them we'd be staying and I don't know about you but that wasn't in my profile."  
  
"Yes, I know. It's complicated."  
  
"Sark, we have to leave now." She urged. "The mission was a success. We got what we came for. What are you doing?"  
  
"This isn't about the disk." He confessed.  
  
"Then what is it about?"  
  
"Sydney," he turned to face her, "there's a child here."  
  
"A child.." She repeated, frowning up at him.  
  
"Yes, a child." And he stared deep into her eyes until the full ramifications of what he was saying hit home.  
  
Shock and disbelief filled her face.  
  
"Where?" She demanded. "How do you know?"  
  
"I saw her earlier. She was being taken to one of Maurice's clients."  
  
"How old is she?"  
  
"I would guess seven."  
  
Sydney turned and walked back in and sat down on a chair. She looked like she may be sick. Sark followed her in and knelt beside her.  
  
"You're sure?" She asked.  
  
"Do you really need to ask me that?"  
  
"So what are you thinking? Are you thinking we should tell Sloane? Have him extract her?"  
  
'As if he'll do anything,' she thought.  
  
"Be serious Sydney, you know as well as I do Sloane cares nothing about a stray child."  
  
"And you do?" A viable question, she thought, under the circumstances.  
  
Sark looked at her thoughtfully and shrugged. He struggled for some explanation, but for once he didn't have one to give her. He'd reacted on impulse earlier when he said he would stay. For a moment he considered saying, 'she looked like you may have.' but then he thought better of it.  
  
After a moment Sydney said, "Sark, we can't stay here, but if there is a girl, we can't just leave her here either."  
  
"Now you see the problem." He said flatly. "I need to think."  
  
"If we stay here any longer, Sloane isn't going to like it." She warned.  
  
"Sloane will have to accept it," he pointed out, "if we stick together. There's another problem.."  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"When they reboot their security surveillance system, it will automatically reset the cameras and listening devices. They'll be able to watch (his eyes followed the room demonstratively). They may be even as we speak."  
  
"I'll pulse it," she said, reaching for her ring.  
  
"I wouldn't advise that." He stopped her. "The first time could have been explained away, but now....Korin may be momentarily intimidated, but he isn't a fool Sydney."  
  
"Are you saying what I think you're saying? We'll have to 'interact' for their benefit?"  
  
"I'm saying that I need time to think."  
  
Sydney weighed the situation in her head. "How long?" She asked finally.  
  
"A day.. maybe 2."  
  
Sydney started to stand up but winced in pain and had to sit back down. She put her hand to her face.  
  
"Oh God, Sydney, I'm sorry. Let me get you some ice for that." He offered, starting to get up.  
  
"No, I'm fine. It's just bruised."  
  
Tilting her chin up to the light he looked her over very seriously.  
  
"You're lucky." He said finally.  
  
"I'll cover it up in the morning."  
  
"Don't cover it too well," he reminded her quietly.  
  
"I know."  
  
****************  
  
L.A. - The parking lot of what looks to be a shipyard.  
  
"Jack," Will came forward holding out his hand, "thanks for coming."  
  
"I got your message. What's up? Congratulations by the way, on your new job."  
  
"Oh, thanks. Hey, I didn't want to bother you with this but Sydney didn't get home last night like I thought she would and when Vaughn wasn't able to make our meeting this morning, I got a little worried. I know I shouldn't be. They've probably just got held up, right? No big deal.." Will trailed off looking up to Jack for reassurance.  
  
Jack mulled over whether he should tell him or not, finally deciding to go ahead. "You have security clearance now, so I think it's alright to tell you. Sydney wasn't able to connect with Vaughn as planned. Something has come up and Vaughn's .. concerned. He felt Sydney didn't look quite like herself when he saw her in Austria."  
  
"So he's seen her? He's there with her now?" Will breathed a heavy sigh of relief.  
  
"No, not with her, but near her. He's decided to stay until Sydney makes contact. For some reason Sark's extended the mission."  
  
"Sark has?" Will questioned.  
  
"He's leading the mission."  
  
"Are you serious? Sark's leading Sydney? I don't get it. Why doesn't Vaughn just pull her out?" Will knew that probably sounded incredibly dumb.  
  
"Vaughn?" Jack started. "Vaughn is Sydney's handler, Will, that's all. Sydney's the one who makes the decisions for Sydney. There's no reason to be alarmed here," Jack tried to sound convincing, "They've probably just run into some kind of delay. If Sydney needs him, Vaughn is there. He always is. That's his job, it's his function in life."  
  
"Yeah, but will he be enough?" Will wanted to know. "I mean can you trust him with her life?"  
  
"Vaughn is the only one I trust."  
  
****************  
  
Back in Austria ~  
  
Sark got up, put on some light music, and turned out the lights.  
  
"From what I've learned about their in-room surveillance," he whispered, kneeling back next to her, "is that it only comes on intermittently. Randomly monitoring each room in the chateau. Of course, they can target a specific area. But the automatic system reboot program will likely only revert to its standard level. He stood up and began looking all around the room. "When it turns on it should emit some type of signal or light."  
  
Sydney stood up and began searching too until Sark touched her arm and pointed up. There it was. A very faint green light emitting from the ceiling above them. It flashed several times and then went off. Sark turned on a light and they saw it was disguised as the smoke detector. They found one in there, and one in the bedroom. He turned the light back off.  
  
"Enya, darling, join me out on the terrace," he called.  
  
Sydney had gone to check the bathroom. "It's clear," she whispered, coming out and following Sark outside. Once there, he handed her a fresh glass of champagne.  
  
"What now?"  
  
"We'll drink some champagne and then go to bed," he answered absently.  
  
They sat there in silence for what Sydney could only guess was an eternity. Then, without warning he got up, replaced their glasses on the table, and took her hand to lead her inside. It was already a reflex to look up as they entered the room. No light for now, they saw, and Sark dropped her hand. Sydney went to the bathroom to wash up and Sark lit several candles and built the fire back up. He had it back to its original beauty by the time she emerged a short time later. Sark then excused himself.  
  
She was glad because it gave her a chance to clear her head. There was no way she would believe Sark was only interested in protecting a little girl. But if there really was a girl, Sydney had to ask herself, did it matter? She needed time to think too. Had she missed something? Something Sark didn't? For an instant she wondered if he hadn't seen her with Vaughn in the hall. But he couldn't have, they were too fast. Oh God, her head ached. She needed to sleep. She crawled into bed, lying on her side to watch the fire.  
  
When Sark came back into the room he was wearing only silk pajama pants. He started to get into bed across from Sydney when she hissed, "Over my dead body Sark."  
  
"Sydney," he calmly pointed out, ignoring her threat and climbing in next to her, "I don't think that it would be in keeping with our little ruse if I were to be caught sleeping on the floor, do you?"  
  
"Fine," she snapped, "but you keep your distance."  
  
"It'll be my pleasure, I assure you." He said, moving over closer and pulling her gently into his arms so that her head lay on his chest. She knew this was only because it made it easier to talk quietly without flagging someone who may be watching, but she didn't like how comfortable he seemed to be with it. Nor did she like how their bodies fit so naturally together.  
  
"This better not be part of some ulterior motive you have in keeping me here," she warned him.  
  
"Are you always this charming in bed?" He chided her.  
  
"I'm serious Sark."  
  
"It'll be a stretch," he yawned, "but I think I can restrain myself. I'd appreciate it if you would do the same," he teased.  
  
"Go to hell."  
  
"Oh, that's very pretty Sydney. Now, stop talking. I need to think."  
  
She started to lift her head off his chest and move away but he held her firmly there. She looked up at him questioningly.  
  
He motioned his eyes to the ceiling. "Don't look now..."  
  
She didn't. She laid her head back down and closed her eyes. Her cheek was throbbing now. She had taken something for the pain, but it hadn't kicked in yet. She was so tired she could hardly keep her eyes open; and Sark felt bizarrely comfortable. As she waited for him to give her the 'all clear' signal, she felt herself drifting off to sleep. The clouds filling her mind as Sark's fingers absently played with her hair in the firelight.  
  
****************  
  
Vaughn had wasted no time in calling Kendall. It was a surprise he hadn't given him any grief about staying. Now all he could do was pace the floor and wait - hope that she would call. No, he didn't want her to call because that would mean she was in trouble. Seeing her like that at the chateau had really unnerved him. Instinctively he felt Sark was up to something. The thought of Sark touching her in any way made him tense. The man had already tried to kill her once. He was a terrorist for Christ's sake. And now he had Sydney in his room under the pretense they were a couple, .. or, something. Vaughn knew Sydney was fearless and determined to succeed in her counter-missions. After seeing her earlier, he worried how far she'd have to go.  
  
"Agent Vaughn?" Called a voice from the other room.  
  
"Here. What do have for me?" He sounded impatiently, coming into the com room of the CIA safe house located about 4km from the chateau.  
  
"It was time-consuming but we've been able to tap into their surveillance system undetected. We should have a visual any moment now. We flagged it to read only into Agent Bristow's room, which is why we have lots of black periods. It appears to run on a 60 second looping cycle, more or less."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Periodically it appears security is accessing specific areas which then off-sets the program."  
  
"So what you're saying is that even though it runs on a fairly regular program, there's no telling when her room will be under observation?"  
  
"Correct. It should be coming up.. right.about.. now. And, there it is." A view of the bedroom filled the screen.  
  
Vaughn leaned in to get a closer look. The image was grainy and the room was dark save for a dwindling fire in the corner. There were two forms on the bed. Upon closer examination he could see one was definitely Sark propped up in the bed. Next to him, lying with her head on his chest was apparently Sydney. Her hair was spread across her face and his torso, making it impossible for anyone else besides Vaughn to be sure. But Vaughn knew her form too well. The curve of her hip, the shape of her leg.. there was no question it was her. Sark's arms were cradling her, but they weren't moving. They were asleep. Vaughn felt the color draining from his face. He needed air.  
  
"Notify me if there's a change," he instructed, walking quickly out of the room.  
  
**************** 


	5. chapter 5

Chapter 5  
  
Sydney woke alone to the morning light falling across the bed. Casually she stretched, glancing up to check for the light. She was clear. She threw the quilt off and walked out into the other room. He wasn't there either. She had just come from checking the bathroom when she heard a faint tapping at the door. She went over and stood beside it. She looked up. The light was still off.  
  
"Syd," came a low voice through the door. "Open up. It's Vaughn."  
  
Sydney threw open the door and yanked him inside, closing it quickly behind him.  
  
"What are you doing here?" She cried. "Are you crazy? You're going to get us both killed!"  
  
"It's okay," he assured her. "Sark is downstairs and we've re-routed the cameras. We have 3 minutes."  
  
"You know about the cameras?"  
  
"Yeah. We've tapped into them; we're watching you too. That's how I knew Sark wouldn't be here." He omitted the part of having had to watch her sleep in Sark's arms all night.  
  
She smiled. "My guardian angel."  
  
He smiled back, in spite of himself. God, he missed her.  
  
"You should go," she warned, "he could be back any minute. I'll get the disk. It's hidden."  
  
She started to go when he stopped her. "You can give it to me later. Listen, I don't know what Sark's up to so I wanted to give you this," he said, and he handed her a necklace.  
  
"What is it?" She asked, holding it up to look at it.  
  
"It's a transmitter. Sorry, I didn't have much time. I barrowed the necklace from one of our local operatives, but it'll have to do. You can use it to contact me if you get into trouble. Just say the word and I'll pull you out."  
  
"Thanks Vaughn." She smiled as she put it on. "How's it look?" she asked playfully.  
  
"Pretty." He answered softly.  
  
Her hand suddenly went to her face. "Oh, I must look a wreck."  
  
"No, you don't." He said seriously. "So, are you alright?"  
  
"Yeah, Sark's been ..... okay. He extended the mission."  
  
"Did he say why?" Vaughn had been waiting to hear this.  
  
She shrugged her shoulders, not sure where to begin. "Not exactly." Then suddenly she asked, "Do you know anything about a child being here?"  
  
"I don't have any intell to suggest that. Why?" He asked, surprised at the question.  
  
"It's probably nothing. Just something Sark mentioned. It's possible that's the reason he's extended.."  
  
"Extended the mission? I find that hard to believe. Is that the reason he gave you?" He asked, bewildered.  
  
"Not exactly. But why would he make that up? He seemed-  
  
"You don't buy that do you?" He cut her off, negating the idea before she could even finish.  
  
"No, I don't." She responded firmly. "Only, what if there is?"  
  
"What if there's what?" He asked, taken aback.  
  
"A child."  
  
He sighed, running a hand through his hair in frustration. "I'll check into it. Not that it would surprise me. It can hardly have just occurred to you. This place, the things that go on here, Syd, we're not in Kansas anymore."  
  
"So we just accept it? You don't have a problem with that?"  
  
"Of course I have a problem with it, what do you think? But right now, you're my problem. And whether there's a child or not, that's not the reason Sark's keeping you here."  
  
"You seem tense," she observed a moment later, "more so than usual."  
  
"I am tense Syd. I don't like what's going on here. You're not a long- term operative. You get in and get out. It's what you do best. I like it that way. I can keep track of you. Your staying here.. with him.. I'm worried I can't protect you."  
  
"That's nice Vaughn," she smiled softly, "but I can take care of myself."  
  
"I know that." He snapped. "It's Sark I'm worried about."  
  
"He's taking care of me too. He has to. We're in this together."  
  
'Yeah, I saw,' he thought to himself, and then he pointed out, "Until he decides he wants something else and you're in his way. The guy's a master manipulator. There probably isn't a child here. It's likely he's just playing on your sympathies to enlist your help with whatever he's really after."  
  
"So you think he's after something." She reiterated.  
  
He nodded. "I'm sure of it."  
  
"What's my counter-mission?"  
  
"Well, we're going to want to know what Sark's up to. Whatever he's after, it's safe to say we're after too. And since we don't even know what that is, complete your mission with Sark for SD-6 and do what you can for us. That's all I can come up with for now. I should know more later."  
  
"You want me to go along with him?"  
  
"I don't," he clarified, "but the Agency does."  
  
She nodded, understanding.  
  
"Keep me close," he reminded her, fingering the necklace.  
  
"And the child?"  
  
Vaughn sighed heavily. "And the child, if there is a child, and Syd, that's a big if, we can contact the local authorities, let them take care of it. Nothing can be done right now, it won't make any difference if we wait on that."  
  
"I'd think it would make a difference to her." She said quietly.  
  
Vaughn looked back at her helplessly, he hadn't meant that the way it sounded. They fell silent, looking at each other.  
  
"I know," she whispered.  
  
Vaughn's beeper sounded. "I have to go. My time's up. Be careful and stay in touch."  
  
She nodded as he slipped out the door.  
  
****************  
  
By the time Sark returned, Sydney was dressed and having coffee out on the terrace.  
  
"Where have you been?" She demanded hotly.  
  
"I see you missed me." He flirted. "I missed you too. My arms have felt empty all morning-" he stopped short. Sydney was glaring at him, but he didn't notice, his eyes had gone immediately to her throat.  
  
"What is that?" He questioned her sharply.  
  
Her hand went up defensively to cover it. "It's mine," she lied. 'Damn' she thought.  
  
He looked hard at her. "You'll have to take it off," he insisted, crossing over to her and unlatching it from behind. "No one would believe I'd given you this."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because a woman of mine wouldn't wear costume jewelry," he responded honestly, holding it up to the light. "We covered this. You're to wear only what I've provided for you." He said and dropped it into his pocket. "Anything else is distracting." He added irritably, walking away.  
  
He poured himself some coffee and sat down. Sydney struggled for something to say, something to divert him.  
  
"Where have you been?" She asked again, slightly more pleasantly.  
  
"I was having a chat with Maurice."  
  
"Maurice? About what?"  
  
"I had a little request I thought he could help me with."  
  
****************  
  
Flashback to Sark and Maurice's conversation earlier ~  
  
"Thank you Maurice, for indulging me. I felt sure you would understand."  
  
"Of course, Mr. Sark, right this way."  
  
Maurice led him down a back corridor of The Davincci to the security viewing room. "I've taken the liberty of removing hotel personnel in order to afford you a more private experience."  
  
"I appreciate that."  
  
Maurice smiled. "My pleasure. At the Davincci it is our goal to service our clients in any capacity they require, no questions asked. I'll just set the coordinates for your suite." Maurice began typing in a sequence of codes. Sark watched him from behind, taking note of the system. "You can customize the tape - duration, lighting, back-ground music, it's all here in the Menu. Of course, you could do all of this from your suite." Maurice looked up at him quizzically.  
  
"Enya would not be comfortable if she were aware she was being filmed. There's also a concern for privacy." Sark explained.  
  
"I understand completely." All the clients of the Davincci it seemed were eccentric in some form or another. Maurice smiled warmly. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"  
  
"I need to know there will be no access to this chamber while I am making use of it."  
  
"Of course, that will not be a problem. Simply let me know when you're ready and I'll see to everything."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
"Enjoy your evening." Maurice smiled as he walked away. 'Fortunately," he thought, pulling out his cell phone, glancing over his shoulder to assure Sark was no longer within hearing distance, "it is not necessary to access the mainframe from this chamber.'  
  
A voice answered on the first ring. "Yes?"  
  
"Everything is in place."  
  
****************  
  
Back to Sark and Sydney ~  
  
"When do you plan on filling me in on what's going on?" She demanded, glancing about the room. Her patience was coming an end.  
  
"Soon. First I have some calls to make."  
  
Sydney narrowed her eyes. "Fine. I was thinking about going out anyway. Maybe I'll just stay out." She threatened.  
  
She had started for the bedroom when she instinctively felt the cameras come on.  
  
"Enya," Sark capitulated. "Come back."  
  
Sark explained as if he was trying to make up to her. "Darling, you can go for a walk when you get home. Here, I don't want you to leave the room. Bringing you with me was a mistake. You'll be leaving soon." Sydney wondered what he meant by she'd be leaving.  
  
She turned and walked slowly back over to where he sat. She was careful to lower her face enough so that the camera couldn't pick up her glowering expression. He pulled her on to his lap and enfolded her in his arms. Again she knew this move was to afford them the privacy they needed to talk, but 'this is getting to be a habit with him,' she thought. She laid her head obediently on his shoulder, reflexively inhaling his scent. It struck her his scent had already become familiar. He had a masculine, clean smell. 'A protective smell', she thought. She'd fallen asleep to it last night.. 'That was a mistake,' she mentally reproached herself.  
  
"What did you find out?" She whispered up into his ear, trying to ignore this train of thought.  
  
He leaned in to answer her then, kissing her cheek so slowly, so softly, it sent an involuntary shiver down her spine. Closing her eyes, she prayed he wouldn't notice.  
  
Of course he did and he smiled despite his best effort. Really, he hadn't been prepared for how much fun this would be. Purposely nuzzling her cheek softly back and forth, and feeling the bumps rise up on her skin, he whispered in her ear, "It seems the girl was procured from a local orphanage for another of Korin's guests', a certain General."  
  
Sydney concentrated on ignoring the sensation of his lips meandering on her skin. "Why would Korin be getting a girl for a General?" She asked, slightly out of breath.  
  
"Does it matter?" He asked, looking thoughtfully down at her, lightly lifting away a stray lock of hair that had fallen onto her face.  
  
"Yes, especially since I'm not even sure there is one."  
  
"A General?" He teased, smoothing her hair. It was so soft. 'Like an angel', he thought to himself.  
  
"A girl."  
  
"Oh. There is, and I couldn't say. I don't care really. It'll be his undoing." He said firmly.  
  
Sydney looked sharply up at him.  
  
"Why should I help you?" she asked.  
  
"Besides that you've been ordered to? Don't you want to?" He goaded her. "Just because he deserves it? Just because we can?" She was intrigued by this. He saw it in her eyes.  
  
She covered it quickly. "What's this really about? I don't believe this is about a girl. It can't just be about revenge," she argued.  
  
He smiled against her. "This is turning out to be very much about a girl," he answered cryptically. "Anyway, you're just saying that because you think I'm one of the 'bad guys'."  
  
"You are."  
  
"Possibly, but you say that as if it's a bad thing," he teased.  
  
Sydney started to push off, angry. She wasn't going to let him play her whether the CIA wanted her to or not. But he held her decidedly there.  
  
"It's all in your perspective Sydney," he continued, cradling her tightly against his chest. He could feel her heart beating softly in time with his. "Don't be so naive. You, more than anyone, should know that no one is ever entirely bad. Just as no one is ever entirely good."  
  
She looked up into his eyes. She felt as if he was trying to tell her something. He looked as if he would continue but then he seemed to think better of it and reverted back to their original topic, loosening his hold slightly.  
  
"I'm aligning a plan for extracting the girl and framing the General for the disk."  
  
Sydney nodded. She had thought as much. "And what about Sloane?"  
  
"I've contacted Sloane. Our orders are to stay put until the disk is recovered."  
  
"The disk is recovered."  
  
"Yes." He answered distractedly. His face clouded with concern as he looked down on her. He placed his hand against her face, feeling the heat. With his thumb he touched her bruised cheek tenderly, caressing it; his touch so light, it caused her eyelids to flutter.  
  
"When this is over," she gritted through her teeth, "I'm going to tear you apart."  
  
He knew he shouldn't laugh, but he couldn't keep from grinning like an errant schoolboy. As childish as it was, it pleased him to know she was vulnerable to him.  
  
They sat there like that in thoughtful silence, each one working the situation over in their head.  
  
"It's still an unnecessary risk." She pointed out a few moments later, after she'd collected herself. "Why don't we just extract her or call the local authorities once we get back?"  
  
"The local authorities? Sydney, don't you think they know? They won't do anything."  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"I know. Even if by some miracle she does get taken out of here, either she or someone else will be back before the week is out. No," he shook his head, "this has to be done my way."  
  
"But why involve the General?"  
  
"Because that's the way it has to be if we're to be allowed to walk out of here with her."  
  
"And you don't mind framing an innocent man for something that will likely get him killed?" She asked, bringing her hands up between them to bridge some distance.  
  
"An innocent man that plays with children," he reminded her, sighing at her touch. "No, I don't mind."  
  
****************  
  
Vaughn - Back at the CIA safe house, he is on the phone ~  
  
"Did Sloane say why he would sanction Sark keeping her here?" he asked Jack through a secured line on his cell phone. Jack had just come from a meeting at SD-6.  
  
"Not exactly. He said new developments required them to stay where they were until additional information could be collected. He didn't seem concerned."  
  
Vaughn turned and glanced back at the monitors depicting Sark cradling Sydney in his arms...again.  
  
"This isn't right, Jack. There's something more. I have a bad feeling about this."  
  
"She can handle it."  
  
'Yeah, but can I?' He thought to himself, watching the screen. He'd regretted telling her to go along with Sark the instant he had. But those were his orders and she was his asset. 'She's a spy; it's what she does.' He reminded himself. Ignoring the rest, he watched her eyes. Even through the poor quality of the feed he could see her working him. 'She is so good. Just the right balance of interest and indifference." He thought. "It could almost be real.'  
  
****************  
  
Back with Sark and Sydney ~  
  
"This isn't going to be easy." He continued. "Security will be amplified and the fact remains that maintaining my cover is imperative to future operations."  
  
Sydney started to speak but as she brought her head up her mouth suddenly came only a breath away from his and they both froze, staring into each other's eyes.  
  
She suddenly felt very warm.  
  
Sark lost his train of thought. "Sydney," he admonished her, "you're distracting me."  
  
She looked away quickly, embarrassed. Sark closed his eyes for a moment, pausing to collect himself.  
  
"We have two things working in our favor," he said, getting back to business. "The first is that we are both very good at what we do. The second, commonly enough, is Korin's predisposition to want to see who's is bigger."  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"Despite the evidence, Korin still suspects me of stealing the disk. Because he can't prove it, he'll be looking for some way to discredit me. He dabbles in video blackmail."  
  
"So what's the plan?"  
  
"We'll need to make a tape to circulate through a looping cycle in order to give us time to access his system."  
  
She visibly winced. "You don't want me to break into his office again?"  
  
"No. If you happened to slam your face a second time, I doubt I could manage to convince him I'd beaten you twice." He smiled. "At least not with a straight face."  
  
"What kind of tape?" She asked, suspiciously.  
  
"Just a tape .. of us. It needn't to be long for what we have to do." He assured her. "And it will serve to lull Korin into believing I am otherwise ... occupied."  
  
"Need I remind you..?"  
  
"Sydney, this is work." He said seriously.  
  
She sighed. "When?"  
  
"Early this evening, before my meeting with Korin. I need to give him some time to prepare."  
  
"Korin knows you're making a tape?" She asked.  
  
"He should by now. I'm guessing he'll be very interested in ... watching us."  
  
"What do you want me to do until then?"  
  
"I'll be going out. I have some calls to make that I can't make from here, some other preparations. I'll begin the taping just prior to my arrival back here. I'd appreciate it if you worked out the parameters by then. Until then, just relax. I'll take care of everything," He assured her. "Oh, and remember, stick to the profile exactly."  
  
"I know."  
  
"I'll be counting on you Sydney."  
  
"I know."  
  
Sydney had remained cradled protectively in his arms. The light had gone off some time before but neither had bothered to check, they had become so engrossed in mentally developing their strategies. The ringing of his cell phone jarred them out of their mode all at once. Sark pulled back and checked it. A select few had the number to his phone and they weren't the sort he could talk to in front of Sydney.  
  
"Sydney .... " he began.  
  
Realizing she was still in his arms, she was immediately embarrassed. Checking to see the light was off; she jumped quickly up and walked out of the room without looking back.  
  
Sark stared after her.  
  
"Yes?" He answered irritably.  
  
"Mr. Sark?"  
  
"Yes, did you do what I asked?" He demanded, fully himself again.  
  
"Yes, Mr. Sark," the voice replied, "I have what you want."  
  
**************** 


	6. chapter 6

Chapter 6  
  
After he left, she was restless. She needed to talk to Vaughn. 'Damn,' She thought, 'It was stupid to leave the necklace on.' It had made her feel safe somehow. She could only hope she could get it back before he examined it more closely. Now she'd have to find some other way to signal Vaughn. It was risky, but she'd have to use the in-room surveillance camera.  
  
****************  
  
Vaughn - back at the CIA safe house.~  
  
Vaughn was sitting by the monitor keeping one eye out for Sydney and another on a report he'd just received from one of their local sources. When he first saw her form flash across the screen, he could see immediately something was up. She looked agitated and was pacing back and forth glancing upwards every five seconds or so. He counted, yes, every five seconds. 'Why wasn't she using the transmitter?' he asked himself. When she put her hand to her neck he knew immediately. The transmitter was gone. He panicked. 'I should never have used something so obvious.' He blamed himself. What was she trying to tell him? He watched her move back and forth. She was pacing and rubbing her neck as if she had a headache. Then he noticed her fingers. 4-1-1, 4-1-1, 4-1-1 over and over. She was signaling him in code. 'Information.' He thought. 'Thank God, she only needs to pass information.'  
  
"I need to go back in." Vaughn informed the COM agent seated next to him.  
  
"Okay, I'll reroute the cameras and send you the signal..,"  
  
"I know the drill." Vaughn called over his shoulder as he grabbed his coat and headed out the door.  
  
****************  
  
Back with Sydney ~  
  
"What's going on? What's happened to your transmitter?" He asked, breathless, after Sydney had pulled him quickly into the room.  
  
"Sark took it."  
  
Vaughn panicked. "We've been made?"  
  
"No, I think it's okay. I told him it was mine. I don't think he suspects anything yet."  
  
"You're sure?"  
  
"If he did, I wouldn't be standing here. You saw my signal?" She smiled, relieved.  
  
He smiled back and nodded. "I was watching for you."  
  
"Listen, Sark has a meeting with Korin this evening. I don't have all the details but he's planning on making a move against one of Korin's associates, a General."  
  
"A General? Really? Interesting." He thought back to the report he'd just finished reading. "Okay, listen," he hurried, "I've been able to find a few things out myself. Sark's definitely on the move. He's initiated contact with several of his associates in the area. There's also another player here. We hadn't been able to gauge his significance until maybe now.  
  
"Who is it?"  
  
"General Slovak. Russian Army. Very high up."  
  
"General Slovak? That's the General?  
  
"Why, do you know him?"  
  
"Only from the SD-6 database. He's been suspected of illegal arms dealings. Doesn't he have a brother in politics?"  
  
"His brother's a rising star in the Russian political arena. Left wing. He's been steadily building in popularity due in no small part to us. The U.S. has been quietly backing him since the clash of our governments over the Iraqi dispute. I find it hard to believe Sark extending the mission while Slovak is here is a coincidence."  
  
"I'd say you're right. He wants to go after the General specifically."  
  
"Did he say that?"  
  
"Yep. So what do you think he's after? Information?"  
  
"We have no idea, but with the effort we've been putting into getting his brother elected, we're concerned."  
  
"We'll be accessing Korin's database later this evening. We're going to make a video of us 'interacting' to use as a decoy. He plans to run it through a looping cycle to give us time to infiltrate Korin's system somehow."  
  
"Wait, what?" He stammered.  
  
"Don't worry, Sark's promised to be a good boy." Sydney assured him.  
  
Vaughn wasn't so sure, but he knew better than to challenge her judgment.  
  
"Sydney, there's something else I need to tell you." He began nervously. "It turns out there may be a child here after all."  
  
"Son of a bitch! He was telling the truth?"  
  
"Well, half the truth. His plan for the General couldn't possibly have anything to do with her. He could just be thinking of her as a means to an end."  
  
"What are you saying?"  
  
"You're still here, helping him." He pointed out.  
  
"Not that I have a choice." She reminded him. "Damn! I knew he wasn't really interested in the welfare of a little girl, but to profit off her misfortune to manipulate me into helping him... I'm so gonna get that Son of a Bitch." She swore. "When are you taking her out?"  
  
Vaughn looked embarrassed. "We aren't. We haven't been given clearance to do that yet. Apparently it would interfere with an ongoing parallel operation of the Austrian government. For the moment there's nothing we can do."  
  
"Where is she?" She demanded.  
  
"I think it's best if you don't know."  
  
Sydney shook her head in disbelief.  
  
"I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do."  
  
"It's not that."  
  
"Than what is it?"  
  
"Sark said no one would help her. He knew."  
  
"Syd," he said, grabbing her by the shoulders, "You need to focus. You can't fall in with his lies. It is more imperative than ever that you convince Sark you're working with him. Devlin has made it clear we need that information. As soon as this is over I promise you we'll look into the situation with the girl."  
  
After he left she sank heavily into a chair. She was shaking, she felt so angry. Angry at Sark, angry with Vaughn. She'd known all along there was more to this than Sark claimed but now she just felt used and manipulated. Sark was manipulating her to get whatever he was after and the CIA was using her to steal it back for them.  
  
**************** 


	7. chapter 7

Chapter 7  
  
Sydney took her time getting ready. It had taken her almost an hour to get her temper under control. She knew she needed to if she were to pull this off tonight. If she could leave the room she'd have gone for a run, but since that wasn't an option it seemed a glass of wine was in order. Perhaps several. The worst part was how confused she felt. Usually she was very sure what side she was on. For the moment she didn't feel like she wanted to be on either side. Sark was good, she had to give him that. He was playing her like a pro. Confusing her and comforting her at just the right times. The look in his eyes the night before when he related the story of the girl. She could swear, even now, the shock was real. But come on, she told herself, this is Sark here.  
  
Still, she had never seen him like that, so.. off balance. From what little she knew of him, he was, if nothing else, consistent. He went into a mission with a specific goal. Every moment meticulously planned and executed. Now he seemed to be just winging it. He wasn't any less decisive, just more reflexive. It could all be part of it; his manipulation of her. But why? For a moment she thought again 'he must know,' know the truth about her. It's all that could explain his abrupt change of behavior. No, she'd be dead if he did. That much she knew.  
  
Vaughn needed her to pull it together and, of course, she would. But she was going to hold him to that promise to help the girl after all of this was over. Which meant the sooner this was over, the sooner he'd have to come through for her.  
  
It helps to have a goal.  
  
As much as anything, she was frustrated with herself for allowing Sark to build her trust at all. It gave him leverage over her. Exactly what she'd set out to avoid. He had used it to get the upper hand. Now the question was how to take back her power. Sark had been right before when he said she hadn't taken the time to learn about him. It had been deliberate. Self-defense. Her father would have said the best defense is a good offense.  
  
With this in mind she thought about what little she did know about him. Sexy, gorgeous, ruthless, cunning. All words she'd heard used to describe him. No, she knew more of him than that. What would her words be? How do you describe the indescribable? Concentrate on the bad, she told herself, it's safer and there's plenty of it. Her mind flashed to the very first time she saw his face. The execution of Quan Li...  
  
She'd witnessed his gentle side too, she conceded, but he'd brought that out only while he was in mission mode and this therefore negated the validity of it. So where to start?  
  
Anomalies came to mind. Anomalies upset him. She'd definitely taken note of that. He was a major control freak... enjoyed toying with her... making her react to him. It annoyed her and she assumed he did it for that reason. But perhaps..., she thought, a light going off in her head, perhaps he could also be made to react. She was definitely angry enough to attempt it. He certainly deserved it. She poured herself another glass of wine and went to take a long bath to give her mind time to work it out. When she finally came out it was late. Sark would be here soon. She needed to get ready. She'd heard the hotel staff arrive to turn down the bed and light the fire while she was in the bath. She hadn't spoken to them as Maurice had instructed them under no circumstance were they to disturb her.  
  
After some consideration, she took it upon herself to complete the ambiance.  
  
***************  
  
Before Sark returned, he'd set the monitors to begin taping for a 12- minute length, starting approximately 20 minutes after his arrival back at the suite. He'd programmed it to then continue in a loop until it was manually deactivated. He'd hesitated to make it start so long after his arrival, but he couldn't be sure what state he'd find Sydney in. It was one of the things that intrigued him about her, her instability. He smiled to himself thinking about it. She didn't trust him, of course, but for the moment she was going along. She understood this taping was only a means to an end.  
  
Strangely, he was dreading this. He had to admit, having Sydney in his arms he'd thought about often. But this was work. He didn't like to think of her coming to him only out of professional obligation. If he weren't so sure it would work, he'd have looked for another way. Fortunately, he was very good at compartmentalizing his emotions. Otherwise it may be difficult not to take advantage of the situation. No, he realized, he wouldn't do that to Sydney..., others perhaps, but not Sydney. Any way, their 'interacting' need only be minimal, more visually deceptive than real. He'd given her his word he wouldn't take advantage of the situation and he would keep it. He felt confident she'd take the lead there. Smiling to himself he thought, 'I'm sure she'll make it as unpleasant as she possibly can.'  
  
Steering himself forward, Sark entered the suite with his usual resolve.  
  
****************  
  
Vaughn - Back at the CIA safe house.~  
  
"Agent Vaughn?"  
  
"Yes." Vaughn stood up to shake his hand.  
  
"I'm David, your op-tech."  
  
"Oh, great. I've heard you're the best."  
  
"Thanks, " he said, placing his files on the table next to his monitor, "I aim to please."  
  
"Hey, listen. I know your vacation started yesterday." Vaughn explained. "I appreciate your coming in. Moving into this phase of the mission we really need someone of your advanced skills."  
  
"I understand." He smiled, sitting down and settling himself. "So, are you two the ones we've been hearing all the buzz about?"  
  
"What do you mean?" Vaughn asked, concerned.  
  
"Oh, well, there's been talk - no naming of names of course, of a couple of agents pulling off some pretty wild tricks lately."  
  
"We have a lot of good agents," Vaughn pointed out.  
  
"Right, well," he said, sensing Vaughn's discomfort, "I'm just happy to be here. So what have we got?" He asked, pulling out his keyboard.  
  
Vaughn filled him in on the basics. "For now we'll be strictly observing. One of our best agents is on the inside. Our number one priority is this agent's protection. But, if all goes as planned, we'll also be gathering some sensitive information to help our friends in Russia. Again, our number one priority is protecting our agent."  
  
David's brow arched. This surprised him. Usually it was the Intel that came first, not the agent. "Do we have a man on point?" He asked.  
  
"No. Too risky. This agent's cover was nearly blown already today."  
  
"What can we do from here?"  
  
"Monitor the situation mostly, be ready for any contingencies that may come up. Now, our agent won't be able to contact us so we'll need to follow their movements through the hotel security surveillance system we've hacked into. After they leave the room, they'll be accessing the computer system of another man staying at the hotel. We aren't sure exactly where that will be so it may take a little finagling on your part to find them."  
  
"If they're in the hotel, I'll find them."  
  
Vaughn continued. "By that point they'll have activated a looping cycle in the hotel mainframe to trick this man into believing they haven't left their room."  
  
"Really? That's good. Was that our idea?"  
  
"No, actually, it wasn't." Vaughn admitted.  
  
David began typing in a series of codes. "Sounds simple enough."  
  
"It's anything but." Vaughn explained. "The man our agent is working with is extremely dangerous. Every moment they spend together our agent's life is in danger."  
  
David nodded, continuing to work the keyboard.  
  
****************  
  
Back with Sark and Sydney ~  
  
Sark sensed the change immediately. The air felt .... electric.  
  
He'd noticed the light was already on when he came in. Korin certainly wasn't wasting any time, he thought wryly. He removed his jacket and placed it over the back of a chair. He wanted to prepare himself. This wasn't going to be easy, pretending she didn't affect him in every way while having to pretend she affected him in everyway.  
  
He could feel her here.  
  
Sydney.  
  
The candles had been lit, and there was a fragrance in the air. The bedroom door was ajar and he could see firelight dancing off the walls. He sensed her waiting for him. His felt his skin come alive.  
  
Slowly he walked to the bedroom, rolling up his sleeves. It wouldn't do to rush. He pushed open the door and leaned his body against the doorframe. And she was there.  
  
Sydney.  
  
Only she was entirely different.  
  
Even with her back to him she looked more alive than she ever had before. As he'd imagined she could be if only she'd allow herself. He stood there, watching her. She sat on the bearskin rug in front of the hearth and was brushing her long hair in the firelight. The light glistened through every strand as it fell softly from the brush with each stroke. His eyes fell to her dress. He'd supposed she would do as instructed and wear one of the garments he'd provided for her. She hadn't. To his surprise all she had on was the shirt he'd worn the day before. It was dark, as most of them were, causing her skin to bloom against the starched fabric.  
  
When she finally did turn to him, she took his breath away. She was Enya in everyway to the untrained eye, but she was all Sydney to him. Her eyes were dark and glistening. There was something..... She looked..dangerous. He felt the blood surge through his veins. He didn't speak immediately, he couldn't. He could only stare at her overpowering beauty.  
  
She'd questioned the need for her to look like herself on this mission. He hadn't had a good answer for that. Now he knew it was because he could never look at another woman the way he was looking at her now. It had seemed a tactical move at the time.  
  
****************  
  
Vaughn and David - Back at the CIA safe house.~  
  
Vaughn was leaning against the table with his back to the monitor when David reached over and nudged him on the arm.  
  
"We have lift-off." He announced. Vaughn looked over. An image of a room came flickering onto the screen.  
  
"Good. It should still be awhile before they go into motion. Has it begun taping yet?" Vaughn asked.  
  
"No. Not yet. Well ...., wait a minute." David typed. "Someone is. But it's not coming from the hotel mainframe directly. It's coming from an outside line hooked into the system."  
  
"That's expected." Vaughn said, looking back down at the case file he'd been reading.  
  
David let out a low whistle. "Now who's this?" He asked.  
  
Vaughn glanced back over his shoulder to look. "That's her," he said quietly, staring at the monitor. The image on the screen reflected her sitting on the floor in front of a fireplace.  
  
Surprised, David looked over at him. "She's yours?"  
  
"She's my asset, yes." Vaughn turned back to his file.  
  
"How long you two been working together?" David questioned.  
  
"It's been a while."  
  
"Must be nice." David observed, continuing to upload information into the system. Vaughn just smiled a little and nodded without looking up.  
  
"Who's this guy?" David asked a few minutes later.  
  
Vaughn looked back. "That's the man she's working with." A worried expression quickly worked its way across his face. He began to rub his forehead as if he felt a headache coming on, but it was just the familiar ache of Sydney facing danger and him having to watch from a distance.  
  
"He doesn't look so bad." David tried to reassure him.  
  
"Looks can be deceiving."  
  
****************  
  
Back with Sark and Sydney ~  
  
Her face lit up when she saw him standing there, watching her. Smiling softly, her eyes moved discreetly upwards to signal him.  
  
But he wasn't thinking about the light anymore.  
  
"Is it you?" He asked, his voice barely a whisper.  
  
She reached her hand out to him, inviting him to her as Enya would. He came and sat close to her. She handed him the brush and moved into his lap like a child. He began brushing her hair gently. After a moment he put the brush down and continued with his hands, feeling the strands fall through his fingers. He marveled at its softness. He'd first felt it the night before when she'd slept in his arms. He couldn't stop touching it. It'd calmed him, helped him to think. He knew she'd slept well too. He'd felt her body relax completely against his. She hadn't moved away from him the entire night. 'She must feel safe,' He had thought, 'safe in his arms. She was.. if only she knew how safe.'  
  
"Sydney, you amaze me," he said softly. Placing his lips against her head inhaling the natural fragrance of her hair.  
  
She turned in his lap to face him. She had Enya's shy, complacent expression drawn across her face. She looked exactly as she should for what they were doing. 'She is so good..,' he mused distractedly. 'too good..'  
  
"Is he watching?" She asked tentatively. He nodded, leaning his head against her cheek. He wrapped his strong arms protectively around her small frame.  
  
"You've outdone yourself. I'm overwhelmed. I had no idea.." He began.  
  
Leaning fully into him, she whispered, "We'll need to be convincing."  
  
When he would reflect back on this later, he would realize that is what should have caught his attention immediately. But she had taken him by surprise. She'd played on his weakness for her. She'd seen past the teasing and chose the common route to offset his reasoning. Sometimes the simple approach was best. It becomes so unexpected in this line of work. He would take pride in her ingenuity.  
  
****************  
  
Vaughn and David - Back at the CIA safe house.~  
  
Vaughn and David watched the unexpected turning of events unfolding in front of them.  
  
"What's she doing?" David asked, confused. "I thought you said this guy was dangerous."  
  
Vaughn nervously watched Sydney work. He knew exactly what she was doing.  
  
"She's playing with fire."  
  
****************  
  
Back with Sark and Sydney ~  
  
Even though he had been slow to see it, it had ebbed at the back of his mind. 'This isn't right. .... She doesn't need to do this much for Korin ....She's going too far .... She's so beautiful .....'  
  
Then the idea flashed in his mind. Convincing to whom?  
  
When she leaned in to kiss him on the mouth for the first time he moved in eagerly to meet her. That's when he caught it. The gleam in her eyes that told him everything in her had changed. She could have fooled anyone else, but he knew her too well. As his opponent he had learned to read every one of her expressions. The set jaw. The determined look in her eyes. She was going into battle now. No fear.  
  
He stopped her just before their lips met, putting his hand up against her throat. She attempted to go around it, to connect with him anyway, but he pulled back, knowing once she did, the opportunity would be lost. He placed his hands on either side of her face and looked deeply in her eyes. She met his gaze unflinchingly, locking her eyes with his. She had incredible eyes. They were dancing with passion, or.... anger perhaps. He considered it. The two emotions are so closely related. Then looking around them, taking in the setting, her behavior to him... It was all so obvious. She'd meant it to be. She was mocking him. A small smile lit the corners of his mouth. Suddenly it was as if he could read her mind. She knew something, or at least she thought she did. And she was mad. Someone had gotten to her, he realized. Reminded her not to trust him. Perhaps convinced her he'd betrayed her..... He thought back to the necklace, the anomaly. Of course.  
  
He realized everything then. She intended to punish him for something. "You think you can beat me!" He exclaimed, suddenly laughing.  
  
She didn't shrink from him. She was glad he knew she was no longer his pawn. It had taken him longer to see it then she'd expected.  
  
"You think I can't?" She defied him bravely.  
  
He ceased laughing then. His eyes roaming the length of her body, he conceded, "No, on the contrary. If anyone has a chance, it's certainly you."  
  
"Tell me what you're after." She whispered in his ear, biting softly on the lobe, causing him to shudder for once. Two could play his games.  
  
"I told you.." He began, weakening again. It felt so right to have her in his arms. It was where she belonged.  
  
"The truth." She stressed, lighting her lips down the sensitive underside of his throat.  
  
"The truth?" He chimed. "I'm not the one lying about who he is," he whispered.  
  
She pulled back abruptly. Apparently he had struck a nerve. Taking advantage of her distress, he leaned in and gripping her by the arms, took hold of her. He could feel her pulse quicken in anticipation of a fight.  
  
He had planned to honor his word to her; he had planned to be good. But she had started this. The gloves were coming off. 'She thought she could manipulate me so easily. She can, of course... But, she doesn't know it yet. She's still innocent.' He thought, reverently.  
  
"Oh Sydney, you have no idea who you're up against." He pushed her down roughly onto her back. "Do you really think you can do it?" he patronized, bringing his full weight down upon her.  
  
Their eyes met in a Mexican standoff. She looked crazed, he thought. Beautiful, but crazed. He held her firmly to the floor. "So you want to fight me, Sydney? Then let's fight."  
  
With that look in her eye Sark couldn't tell if she was going to try and beat the hell out of him or take him to bed. Both possibilities excited him immensely. He knew her strength. He knew she could take most men, but she couldn't take him, not if he didn't want her to. He was confident in his ability to control her physically. She didn't move right away, though, she just stared at him with those beautiful eyes of hers. He couldn't read her expression. It unnerved him.  
  
"Come on Sydney," he taunted, trying to provoke her either way, "you've got me on my knees here. I'm waiting."  
  
She seemed to falter then and he thought maybe he had actually beaten her until she came up and suddenly and recklessly captured his mouth with hers in a mad drive for control. Crushing herself up against him, pushing him back, she pressed her way up again into his lap, her tongue entering his mouth possessively. Controlling him and fighting him with all her strength and through sheer determination she managed finally to straddle him with her knees. Then, using her legs as leverage, she pushed him back hard against the side of the bed.  
  
Pulling back, her eyes blazing, she wiped her mouth roughly with the back of her hand, and hissed. "I will get you Sark."  
  
He smirked. "Sounds like a threat. I do hope you're not teasing me....." he leaned up and whispered her name in her ear, "Sydney."  
  
He didn't know why he loved the sound of her name coming from his lips, why he loved causing those dreaded shivers to spread throughout her. He felt the bumps rising up all over her skin under his finger tips and he watched the color sneak across her cheeks. It fascinated him.  
  
Gripping her by the back of the neck with one hand, grabbing a fist full of her hair at the same time, he propelled her forward into him again. She resisted, pushing hard, and managed to keep her head back slightly and maintain a small distance with a strength that surprised him somewhat.  
  
This also fascinated him. They were both breathing hard now. Something between them had shifted. He could feel it. He knew she felt it too.  
  
"How do you know I won't kill you?" he asked, suddenly curious, his mouth just a breath away from hers.  
  
"If you wanted to kill me," she whispered; her eyes fluttering closed in anticipation of his touch as he reached up and caressed her cheek, "you would have."  
  
He felt her tremble slightly at his touch.  
  
"Perhaps I've tried." He said, searching her face with his eyes.  
  
She shook her head slightly. "No, you haven't." But her voice came out shaky; he could see she was beginning to falter. Her body was responding to his touch of it's own volition now. Her mind was losing its grip.  
  
"No," he relented, completely amazed, "not really." He couldn't take his eyes off her anymore.  
  
"You are so beautiful, do you know that?" He breathed, bringing his forehead up against hers.  
  
Slowly, tenderly, he bent to kiss her again, enjoying the way she responded this time. Soft. Enveloping. It had been a long time, it occurred to him, that he'd wanted this. He relaxed his grip and she fell against him.  
  
"Perhaps you already have me......" he mused.  
  
Looping one arm around her small waist, he pulled her effortlessly up onto the bed with him in one fluid motion. They fit together so perfectly it was hard to tell where the fight had ended and the love began.  
  
He held her possessively underneath him. "You're so small, so delicate," he sighed, "I just want to crush you."  
  
She smiled. She couldn't feel frightened. It was all so surreal. She lifted her hand and pressed it against his cheek. In a way, it was so sweet, so unexpected, for both of them. His eyes closed, allowing her femininity to envelope him, his head moving against her hand. It felt.... Inexplicable. And suddenly she was precious to him. He felt insanely possessive of her.  
  
He fell into her then, taking her soft mouth hungrily with his. He wanted her so badly now he wasn't sure he wouldn't hurt her for it. He wanted her to belong fully and only to him. He craved to be inside of her, to feel her warmth surround him, to spill his seed inside her so she would know she was his. He entwined his legs around her, pushed her arms up over her head, groped her shamelessly, pressing hard against her in his need to get ever closer to her. He knew he was probably hurting her, but he didn't care anymore. Their bodies responded so well to each other, watching her react to him was making him insane. He could feel her skin burning against his lips, making him feel desperate and crazed. Everything about her brought out the man in him. Just the scent of her was pushing him over the edge. When she began to moan softly beneath him, he thought he might come completely undone.  
  
His mind screamed at him to stop. This wasn't part of the plan.  
  
But she was here, beneath him, finally, willingly, and he could feel everything about her.  
  
He wanted desperately to feel her.....  
  
It felt as if this was all he ever wanted.  
  
His hands traveled along the thin stretch of fabric that still separated her from him, and he struggled with himself. He tried to think. She was so beautiful ... He had to stop it.... It could be so easily removed ...... He wanted her....He couldn't do this.....  
  
Looking away from her, he struggled to focus. They had gone too far. This wasn't the time. Bloody hell, she was a walking anomaly. How had she done this to him? He couldn't lose control, not now. And Sydney Bristow out of control in his arms would be his undoing. This he knew. He had to let her go now, or he never would, he realized. Then he shuddered because he knew. Once he he'd had her, he'd kill her before he'd ever give her up again.  
  
He had to end this. He had to stop it before it was too late. They were here for a reason. He had to complete his mission.  
  
He pulled back then, all at once aware. Looking up he saw the light had gone off.  
  
"Syd," he breathed heavily, "that's enough. I only set the clock for 12 minutes. We have to go. We've already stayed too long."  
  
Sydney looked up at him in disbelief. She'd momentarily forgotten everything. Forgotten the mission. Forgotten the light. Forgotten Vaughn.  
  
"Oh my God." Her hand went to her mouth. "Damn it! What just happened?" Her eyes flew open wide.  
  
"You were amazing." He said quietly and then quickly realized the words hadn't come out quite as he intended them to.  
  
'Shit. Son of a Bitch! He did it again.' Her head screamed. She flushed again, but this time it was out of humiliation. How could she be so entirely irresponsible? She felt ill looking down and seeing the state he'd so easily brought her to. She was barely covered and her hair was in complete disarray. 'Oh, God,' she thought, her head falling back.  
  
He leaned down to caress her gently, but a flick of her eyes stopped him cold. "You said we were finished."  
  
He nodded. Standing up, he reached out his hand to help her up. She ignored it, rolling over and pulling herself up off the bed in one swift motion.  
  
He buttoned his shirt while she pulled on a pair of pants and shoes she'd hidden under the bed.  
  
Picking up the case and a gun, he turned to her. He wanted to say... something.  
  
"Let's go," she said, lifting her head up and walking quickly past him.  
  
He checked the hallway before opening the door for her. Noiselessly they slipped down the hall to the back stairwell. He estimated they had 10 minutes left. Tops.  
  
**************** 


	8. chapter 8

Chapter 8  
  
Vaughn and David back at the CIA safe house~  
  
Vaughn stood next to David and watched Sydney unravel before his eyes.  
  
He tried to concentrate, read her expressions, but with the angel of the camera it proved too difficult. Eventually, he just had to stop and let it play out. He had no choice but to trust her. He wondered briefly if she wasn't playing out of her league; and then he wondered if Sark wasn't. What was she trying to do? He worried. It felt like he was watching something very intimate unfolding between them, and he didn't like it.  
  
"What is it with these two?" David asked uneasily.  
  
Vaughn just shook his head. He had no idea.  
  
They watched in silence save for the occasional tapping of David's keyboard. At one point, frustrated, Vaughn Exclaimed, "Can't you do something about the sound?"  
  
"Tried. Sound's fine. They're just not doing much talking. And what they are saying, they're keeping to themselves."  
  
Somewhere along the line Vaughn had started pacing, watching the screen then looking away, looking back. It was like a terrible movie you couldn't stop watching. He knew it had to stop. They were on a timer for God's sake. He wondered how long a time Sark had decided he "needed" with Sydney. Then all at once, just when Vaughn thought he'd scream, the screen went blue.  
  
"What just happened?" He demanded.  
  
"It's entered into the looping cycle. I didn't think you needed to see it again." Answered David.  
  
"Can you circumvent the loop?"  
  
"Not from here. Not without giving them away. I'll start looking for them." After a moment he murmured, "I can see why she's one of our best agents."  
  
Vaughn shot him a look.  
  
"Oh, sorry." He apologized.  
  
************************  
  
Back with Sark and Sydney~  
  
Rounding the corner of the back stairwell, Sark quickly led Sydney down a deserted hallway to the empty surveillance room; letting them in with the key Maurice had provided him with. He explained to her in a low voice, "Korin is networked into the surveillance system via a front company of his, Volksricht Securities. Who, as it turns out, handles security for the Davincci."  
  
Entering the chamber, Sark headed directly over to the mainframe.  
  
"What do you want me to do?" She asked, following him in.  
  
"You don't have to do anything."  
  
"Then why am I here?" she asked.  
  
"Because I need you where I can keep an eye on you."  
  
She looked at him to clarify what he meant but he'd already set to work.  
  
He pulled a chair out for Sydney and then, reaching into their case, took out a small metal device and placed it next to the monitor, plugging the jack into the hard drive.  
  
"What is that?" She asked, sitting down.  
  
"It's a digital relay." Standing next to her, he began inputting information onto the keyboard. He explained, "It seems someone has hacked into the Davincci surveillance system from a remote Satellite. I noticed it this morning when I had Maurice explain the system to me in preparation of our.... time together." He looked briefly over at her.  
  
"Who accessed it?" She asked, keeping her face emotionless, ignoring the reference. 'Oh my God,' she thought, 'he knows.'  
  
"There could be a hundred different possibilities. That's not important," he assured her. "It isn't our problem - but it will be our point of entry. When our new "friend" hacked into the system, they inadvertently created a bridge for us to access Volksricht Securities and thus Korin's personal database."  
  
"So they also have access to Korin." She reiterated. She could feel her blood pumping. "Are they aware of that?"  
  
"It's not likely." He answered, continuing to upload information. "The bridge only became amenable when Korin accessed the surveillance camera to record us. Which was a small window of opportunity I orchestrated specifically for this reason. It's unlikely whoever this is could have anticipated that variable." Sark kept his eyes on the monitor following his progress meticulously through the system.  
  
"So someone's accessed the mainframe at just the right time? Seems like a hell of a coincidence." She covered.  
  
"Doesn't it?" He looked over to her pointedly.  
  
"So how did you know to make the link?" She asked quickly, changing the subject.  
  
"I'm just being resourceful. When I decided to go after Slovak, the question became how to tie him to the missing disk. Infiltrating Korin's personal files, leaving a trail leading back to him, seemed the obvious route. Unfortunately, this is easier said than done. It's a little known fact that Korin is a bit of a technical wiz. In developing his own software, he likes to devise programs with terrible patches. He adds features that are useless to anyone but himself, making it virtually impossible for outside parties to access sensitive information. It's long been rumored he once worked for the KGB doing just that type of thing..." he explained idly while continuing to upload various code sequences. "That's actually true." He added.  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"I keep track of these things."  
  
He continued. "Therefore the real difficulty wasn't necessarily getting to Korin, it was that Korin's personal database has a one-sided security. The only way you can tap into it is from inside the line. I had considered originally if we could just tap into his source code I could mess with the beta kernels to access his hardware. Too time consuming. When I discovered the breach from an outside source, the idea began forming in my head of initiating a 'third party rip-off'. Far more simple. We're going to create a back track into our invisible 'friend's' network. I'm working on reverse engineering a straight connect from their system right into ours." He explained, still tapping at the keys.  
  
"You mean we're piggy-backing off one to reach the other?" She reiterated. "Nice." Despite herself, she was impressed.  
  
She found herself leaning in to get a closer look. "I didn't know you knew so much about computers."  
  
"There's a lot you don't know about me." He pointed out, stepping back and moving her chair over in front of him to give her a better view. Reaching his arms around her, he leaned in and continued working from this angle, watching the screen from over her shoulder.  
  
She could feel her body warming to him at once. She felt flush; his face was so close to hers. Sark seemed completely oblivious, however. She could see his mind was completely focused on the task at hand.  
  
'I need to refocus,' she thought. She closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, she watched him labor at what appeared to be some type of sequencing format.  
  
"How will we get through?" She asked. "That firewall is layered. It would take an expert to break that code."  
  
"Yes," he murmured as he examined the monitor closely. "This might do it...." Starting again, he in-put a series of numbers, repeating them in a duplicate pattern 51 times. The firewall dropped and cleared.  
  
She was stunned.  
  
"Now, with the proper configuration," he explained, continuing to work, "we can roam through an outer area of their network and relay on over to Korin's database."  
  
"Sydney," he said quietly, a moment later, "when I said you were amazing before, I wasn't critiquing your 'performance'."  
  
************************  
  
Vaughn and David back at CIA safe house~  
  
"Agent Vaughn, someone is accessing our feed." David informed him urgently.  
  
"How is that happening?" Vaughn asked, coming quickly over.  
  
"Someone's managed to circumvent our preliminary firewall."  
  
Vaughn considered it could be Sydney but he knew she didn't have the technical training for that. That left the possibility it was Sark, which couldn't be good. But Sark had Sydney, and this complicated things.  
  
"Are they lifting information?" He asked.  
  
"No, but they could." David cautioned, watching the screen in amazement. "No, wait... they're riding our tail to infiltrate another IP address that's logged on to the system. Wow,... that's good." He exclaimed. "Should I shut it down?"  
  
"Not yet. It could be them. As long as they aren't siphoning, let's let it play out." Vaughn instructed.  
  
"You must have a lot of faith in your agent to allow her access like that." David observed gravely. "Are you sure you trust her that much?" He was thinking about what he'd witnessed earlier through the monitor. The relationship between their agent and the man she was working with appeared complicated, to say the least. He understood the taping had been staged for someone else's benefit, but there was something in their reactions to each other that had appeared very... real, he thought.  
  
Vaughn didn't hesitate.  
  
"Absolutely." He answered firmly.  
  
*************************  
  
Back with Sark and Sydney~  
  
"Won't they detect the infringement?" Sydney asked, referring to their 'anonymous' third party, trying desperately to ignore the wave of heat coming over her.  
  
"Yes, I'm sure." He answered distractedly, continuing to work.  
  
"Well, won't they shut us down?" She asked, looking over to him.  
  
Looking briefly back at her, he replied, "I don't think so."  
  
"What makes you so sure?"  
  
"Call it a hunch."  
  
"Will you try to infiltrate their database as well?" She worried a moment later.  
  
"No, there isn't time. And it might unnecessarily provoke them."  
  
She sighed to herself in relief. She wasn't sure how she could manage to prevent that without exposing herself completely. Sark may have some idea she was hiding something, but he couldn't possibly know for sure. 'Or I wouldn't be sitting here,' she thought.  
  
Sark continued tapping at the keyboard, his gaze fixed on the screen. "Okay, I'm in." He pulled back. "We can input proof of Korin's conspiracy with Slovak through encrypted messages and build a back feed to our anonymous third party." Sark took out the original reader she'd used in Korin's office and hooked it up. He took out a blank disk and downloaded the files. Then he took out another disk and, inserting it into the hard- drive, ran a secondary program.  
  
"Now what are you doing?" She asked.  
  
"Covering our tracks."  
  
************************  
  
Vaughn and David back at CIA safe house~  
  
Information suddenly started flowing down their screen.  
  
"Wait, are we picking up what they're picking up?" Vaughn asked surprised. 'Could this be it,' he thought, 'why she went so far?'  
  
"Yep. The information will have to travel our system to reach theirs." David explained, getting excited.  
  
"What are we getting?"  
  
"There's everything," David declared, stunned. "Private communiqués, their sources of money and arms, video files, lists of potential targets corresponding to various militia,... it goes on and on."  
  
"Anything regarding our Russian friend?" Vaughn asked, watching from behind.  
  
"I don't know that yet, but, it's all here.... Oh shit!" David shouted, tapping furiously at his keyboard.  
  
"What is it?" Vaughn asked.  
  
"I've lost it," he yelled, frustrated. He was working desperately at the keys trying to get them to respond, to stop it. "It was on a time-release erase." He explained. Having been built into the program Sark was running, it was happening too quickly for David to circumvent it and retain the information. "And it gets worse." He added. "They've also downloaded a low grade virus."  
  
"Did they get it?" Vaughn asked, referring to the Intel.  
  
David sighed. "Yeah."  
  
"Do we still have access to the surveillance system?" Vaughn worried, a moment later.  
  
David searched the line. "No, we've been rerouted. And it looks like there's a maze of firewalls blocking our reentrance."  
  
"How long?" Vaughn asked.  
  
"Maybe two hours. Impressive shit." David observed. "We need this guy working for us."  
  
Vaughn just stared at him. This was bad. He knew it had to be Sark. And now Sark had Sydney and the Intel; and he'd been the one to help him get it.  
  
************************  
  
Back with Sark and Sydney~  
  
The monitor flashed 'TASK COMPLETE'. Sark collected his equipment and replaced it to their bag.  
  
"Now I have to go plant the disk on Slovak." He said. He turned to Sydney and put out his hand. "Give me the disk," he instructed.  
  
She reached into the case and pulled one out from a hidden pocket and handed it to him.  
  
"Both of them." He said evenly.  
  
She stared at him. "I don't know what you mean." She answered, meeting his gaze unflinchingly.  
  
"We don't have time for this," he warned. "We only have 4 minutes left. If you're found with that disk I may not be able to protect you."  
  
She hesitated, thinking it over. She didn't respond but simply held his gaze.  
  
"Don't worry," he reassured her, "you'll get it back. I promise. You need to get to the secondary extraction point and cover yourself," he cautioned. "Now."  
  
She still hesitated.  
  
"Sydney, Korin will be aware of what's happened by now, and it won't take him long to deduce I played a part in it. He isn't fool enough to come after me directly but his ego may provoke him into going after something he knows belongs to me and that I value greatly."  
  
"And what would that be?" She asked.  
  
"You." He said simply.  
  
"Why are you really going after Slovak?" She demanded. "I want the truth."  
  
"Look, I get that you think I'm a bad boy, and I won't deny that. But," he said, "Some things are just what they are." Sark turned to an alternate monitor and, accessing the 'MENU', tapped in a number. Up on the screen popped an image of Slovak walking towards a small girl sitting on a bed. The image was grainy but, even so, you could see she was trembling. Suddenly Sydney felt like she couldn't breathe. She could feel the blood rushing from her face.  
  
Sark braced her on the small of her back. "I would have liked to have spared you that," he said quietly, watching the screen as Slovak began unbuttoning his pants. "There are many things you should be spared."  
  
Putting his hand out again he told her, "I have to go,"  
  
"I want to do it." She said. She was talking about something else now and he knew what she meant.  
  
"No." He shook his head. "This isn't a job for you. I'll take care of it," he promised. Oddly, his word was enough for her. She knew Slovak would be dead very soon.  
  
"Go." He ordered. "We don't have much time. I won't be able to concentrate if I can't trust that you're safe."  
  
This time she didn't hesitate. Reaching into her pocket, she handed the disk directly over.  
  
"Don't worry Sydney," he said, taking it, "I'll protect you."  
  
*********************** 


	9. chapter 9

Chapter 9  
  
Sydney had intended to do as Sark had told her to and proceed to the secondary extraction point as instructed. Then she remembered the necklace. She had to get it before she left. If Sark hadn't picked up on what it was before she knew that given time he'd figure it out. She couldn't let that happen. She remembered he'd left his suit coat upstairs in their suite. He had put the necklace in the pocket this morning. It was possible it was still there. She hesitated, not sure which way to go. He needed her out of here - he'd been very clear about that. But she had to go back or risk exposure. It'll just take a minute, she told herself, heading quickly back to their suite.  
  
Going back the way she'd come, she passed by the surveillance room. She cautiously peered in through the window of the door. It was deserted. Sark had already left. She gave way to a sigh of relief and moved on past it, creeping up the back stairwell. When she reached their floor she checked the hall before running to their door and slipping quietly into their suite. Her eyes went immediately up to the ceiling. No light, she noticed, forlornly. No Vaughn. She went over to where he'd laid his coat when he'd come in earlier. Finding it still there, she grabbed it and franticly searched through the pockets. There was nothing. The necklace wasn't there.  
  
'Damn.' She panicked. She tried to think. She made a visual sweep of the room. What would he have done with it, she wondered.  
  
"It's down here," a loud, angry voice was saying. She could hear heavy footsteps approaching. She turned towards the door where the sound was coming from. It was Korin's voice, she realized. He was coming.  
  
"That Son of a bitch thinks he can do this to me...," he was ranting.  
  
Sydney dashed for the bedroom and retrieved the gun Sark had hidden for her under the bed. She'd just finished stuffing it into the front of her pants and covering it with Sark's shirt when they came barging through the door. She looked as startled as she felt. She hadn't had time to formulate a plan. Oddly, her first thought was of Sark. She knew he would be suspicious if he found out she'd come back. He'd known about the disk and perhaps even suspected she was up to something but she felt sure he didn't know anything yet. She could have explained the extra copy away if she had to. She could have told Sloane she made the extra disk as a precaution because she hadn't trusted Sark to bring it back. Sloane knew she didn't like Sark. He would believe her. He couldn't prove she'd done anything really wrong. Not before this. Now he'd question what was so important she'd jeopardize the mission to come back for.  
  
"Well, well...." Korin purred menacingly upon seeing her through the doorway. "What do we have here? Don't tell me Mr. Sark left a defenseless creature such as yourself up here all alone."  
  
'Defenseless creature my ass..'she thought to herself. But she immediately affected Enya's demeanor and lowered her gaze in a submissive stance. She could hear Sark's voice in her head telling her, 'Stick to the profile exactly. I will be depending upon you to do so.' What else could she do? She needed time to think. So she stood motionless and waited for Korin to make his move.  
  
"Come out here woman," Korin instructed harshly.  
  
She did a quick check to see if the gun was exposed. It wasn't. Sark's shirt was big enough to cover her easily. Slowly she moved forward, looking very pained. She took her time getting to him, pretending to be frightened; not that she wasn't. She could feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins. She fought the urge to attempt an escape; worried it may not be good for Sark if she did, that it might compromise him.  
  
"It is unfortunate Mr. Sark didn't show more wisdom and remove you from this situation." Korin observed as she came forward. "It's unlike him to be so careless." Sydney didn't respond. She kept her eyes lowered, taking pains to appear complacent and scared.  
  
He stood in front of her. "You are extraordinary," he admitted, looking her over in great detail. "I can see why he values you so much."  
  
"However, it's unlike him to exhibit such poor judgment." He continued, thinking out loud. "Perhaps his reasoning has become skewed. Perhaps this has something to do with you." He looked at her. "After what I've witnessed this evening,.... I could understand." She didn't speak but her eyes got very wide, as if surprised.  
  
He began pacing. "Do you know what he's done to me?" He asked suddenly, stopping. "Do you?" He shouted at her, sounding desperate.  
  
She began to force tears out of her eyes, as she shook her head no.  
  
'If he lays one hand on me I swear,....' she thought. But surprisingly he didn't.  
  
"However," he went on, "this does put me in a very favorable position. You see Mr. Sark is not a man easily influenced. He can be somewhat volatile and unpredictable." He shot her a commissary look. "I can imagine he is not an easy man to live with."  
  
He watched her face for a reaction, but she didn't react. It disconcerted him. She reminded him of Sark himself in some ways, only feminine and, of course, prettier. For a second he wondered if she was just as dangerous. He discounted it. "You are very quiet Enya." He remarked idly. "That's a fine quality in a woman." He looked her over again. "You have many fine qualities." Korin was circling her now, like prey. She felt like dinner.  
  
"My problem in dealing with such a man," he went on, "is that his employer is so very protective of him. It makes our business arrangements very one- sided." He said with an air of dissatisfaction. "I came here to deal with Sark, but perhaps now that I have you, he will have to deal with me." He smiled darkly. He had long looked for some way to balance the scales between them.  
  
Sydney tried to weigh her options, consider the best route to take. There were only two guards with him. They also seemed to be closing in on her. That was when Sark walked in through the door.  
  
His shock at seeing her there was evident as he took in the scene. For a moment he looked confused, then angry, then nothing. His face went completely blank. He whipped out his gun and he leveled it at Korin. Korin's guards in turn pulled out their guns and leveled them at Sydney.  
  
Korin was the first to speak. "Mr. Sark, I'm glad you could finally join us. We have been waiting for you. I believe you have something of mine. And now, ...," he said, motioning to Sydney, "it seems we have something of yours."  
  
"Indeed." Sark said flatly, looking briefly over at her.  
  
"If you'd like for her to leave here in her as yet 'untouched' state, I suggest you put your gun down." Korin instructed.  
  
Only he didn't. He seemed to be thinking it over. Sydney could guess what he was thinking. He would know Korin hadn't captured her on her way out. He would have cleared her exit. She had betrayed him by coming back. He would already be wondering why she did. He couldn't trust her now. On the other hand, she was all he had. It couldn't be an easy choice to make. He looked extremely annoyed. Eventually he seemed to come to a decision and he tossed his gun to the ground. She could pretty much read his mind from his expression. 'Bloody hell Syd,' he was thinking as he gave in.  
  
Korin smiled at his apparent victory.  
  
"Enya may leave now." Sark stated rather than asked.  
  
'Oh my god,' she thought, genuinely surprised, 'he's actually going to try to negotiate for me.'  
  
"Not yet." Korin objected.  
  
"We are civilized men here Korin, there is no need to involve a woman in our dealings." Sark said evenly, appealing to Korin's sexist tendencies.  
  
"Yes, it is distasteful." He conceded. "Normally I would agree with you. However, I don't believe you're in a position to make demands. And I fear the predicament that you yourself are responsible for putting me in will require a little leverage on my part to rectify. Therefore, until we can work this all out, she stays."  
  
"I do see your point." Sark admitted. "However, to be clear, regardless of what you think I've done, I can assure you my employer will not tolerate this behavior towards me."  
  
Korin seemed to falter slightly. It was true his employer had an uncanny way of fulfilling Sark's threats. His settling of scores had been consistently bone-chillingly effective. Korin had heard several stories......  
  
Sark shifted his gaze to Sydney.  
  
"Enya, come." He said sternly. With a nod of his head he motioned her over to him. She found herself thinking it amazing how just one move of his could put her by his side. She rushed over and he pulled her protectively into his arms. He cradled her head against his chest with his hand. For whatever reason, she realized, he was going to try to play this out. In keeping, she trembled slightly against him. He bent his head down and gently kissed her temple, soothing her.  
  
"Are you alright?" He asked her. He tilted her chin up to look her over. His eyes adored her and his voice was so soft he sounded almost frantic. It threw her a little. "Are you?" He asked again, purposely locking his eyes with hers. She nodded she was, trying to read him.  
  
"This is very touching, Mr. Sark, but our predicament remains unchanged." Korin reminded him irritably.  
  
Ignoring him, Sark asked specifically, "Did these men touch you?" Emphasizing the words 'these men' by upping his voice an octave. It was just enough. Sydney understood he was asking if there were any more guards. "It's all right angel, you can tell me." He assured her. He was telling her to trust him, to go along. Slowly, she nodded her head no. There weren't anymore.  
  
"If you think I can just let you walk out of here, taking my entire operation with you, I'm afraid you're mistaken." Korin informed him.  
  
Sydney hugged herself against him, whimpering, pressing the gun into his side.  
  
"What you have robbed me of tonight has taken me years to acquire. I suspect even your employer will understand any action I may be required to take in order to secure it's return." Korin justified.  
  
"Perhaps." Sark answered, distractedly, looking thoughtfully down at her. He caressed her bruised cheek tenderly with his finger. Sydney very discreetly lowered her eyes in the direction of the gun hidden below. When she looked back up at him she had a conspiratorial glint in her eye.  
  
"As I was saying," Korin continued, becoming annoyed with Sark's ambivalence and wanting resolution, "you have something of mine and now I want it back. I believe, Mr. Sark, we can quite easily come to an understanding in this matter."  
  
But Sark didn't appear to be listening to him anymore. Staring into her eyes, he tilted his head in amusement. A small affectionate smile lit the corners of his mouth. "That's my girl," he whispered. She smiled back demurely, as Enya would.  
  
Sark's expression changed dramatically then. Turning back to Korin, throwing Sydney behind him, he whipped out her gun and shot both his guards, killing them instantly. They hadn't had time to return fire. He then turned his gun on Korin who had already raised his gun in return. They stood there eyeing each other, in a tense standoff, both fully prepared to fire.  
  
"Be careful Mr. Sark, things are quickly getting out of hand." Korin advised him evenly.  
  
"It is time for you to leave, Enya." Sark announced, his voice suddenly abrupt and hard.  
  
Sydney was confused. They could get out of there now, both of them. It didn't make sense he only wanted her to leave. He was staying in character, she noticed. She looked at him curiously, narrowing her eyes, trying to read him. She tried to go to him but he stopped her.  
  
"Damn it Enya," he hissed, turning his attention back to Korin, "you can't stay with me. I need to finish this and I don't want you here." He moved purposely away from her. "I will arrange for a car to pick you up in front of the hotel." He said firmly. "Wait for me downstairs. I will be down shortly to say goodbye."  
  
Still she didn't move. She just stood there looking up at him, trying to read his expression. But his face held no expression. He was somewhere else.  
  
"Go." He said severely.  
  
She could see she had no choice. She put her head down submissively, as Enya would, and walked out of the suite, closing the door behind her.  
  
After she left, Korin said, his voice full of admiration, "She's priceless."  
  
"Isn't she?"  
  
Sark slowly lowered his gun and Korin tentatively did the same.  
  
"I didn't betray you," Sark informed him straight off. "It was Slovak. You were correct in suspecting me, I did go after your database tonight but I did so only as a precaution. My employer had received information from a reliable source that there was a third party accessing your files. It was our concern that in an effort to drive up your price you and Slovak engineered the disk robbery in order to market it to a rival agency. When I accessed your files it became evident the deception came from Slovak and not yourself. Congratulations, you'll be allowed to live."  
  
Korin was visibly relieved, though clearly confused. "I don't understand." He said.  
  
"Slovak was working with the CIA." Sark announced. Korin's eyes opened wide in astonishment.  
  
"I have proof." He assured him.  
  
Where is Slovak?" Korin asked slowly.  
  
"He's dead. It couldn't be helped." Sark answered, matter of fact. "But that's another matter entirely."  
  
"Why should I believe you?"  
  
"Because you don't have the choice." Sark answered seriously. "Now, I have recovered the information you lost and I am willing to return it to you as a measure of good faith between us."  
  
Korin was surprised. "Good faith?" He questioned doubtfully.  
  
"Mr. Korin, we are business men. You're valuable to me in that you have something I want. I'm valuable to you.. obviously. Precarious as our current situation appears to be, we have a long history of successful transactions between us. I believe it would be shortsighted to bring such an abrupt end to our association. My employer is very generously willing to overlook this incident and continue with the purchase of the disk as originally planned now that I have indeed recovered all copies of the disk in question." Korin could see Sark was once again fully himself now. It was oddly comforting, even under the circumstances.  
  
"In exchange?" Korin asked cautiously.  
  
"In exchange you will give me the film of Slovak and the girl."  
  
"But why? What good is that now?"  
  
"I have my reasons."  
  
Korin accepted this. He had no choice but to accept it. "Is there anything else?" He asked.  
  
"Yes, I want the girl as well."  
  
"The girl?" Korin looked confused.  
  
"She'll be leaving with me tonight. I will expect her to be delivered to me within the hour, along with the film of course. At which time you will receive payment for the disk as we previously agreed. I will also return your missing files."  
  
Korin was puzzled. "Why do you want the girl? You're not interested in -  
  
"Don't be vile." Sark cut him off. He shook his head in disgust. "Grown men playing with children, it's entirely repulsive. Not to mention sloppy and bad for business. I expect you never to enter into such an arrangement again or I promise you I will kill you myself."  
  
He could see Sark was very serious about this. "Is that all?" He asked again.  
  
"For now. Do we have an agreement?"  
  
Korin considered it for a moment, though the end result had obviously been a forgone conclusion. "Yes, we do." He affirmed.  
  
They both put their guns away inside their coats.  
  
"Excellent. My employer will be pleased."  
  
"Do give him my regards."  
  
Sark nodded. "I'll do that."  
  
************************  
  
Sydney was waiting impatiently in front of the hotel when Sark came out a short while later. Maurice was standing close by, looking pained. He probably wanted to be of some service but since he was unable to actually address her, it was an uncomfortable situation for him. Sydney ignored him completely.  
  
"Mr. Sark," he rushed gratefully up to him, relieved to have him finally arrive, "I arranged for the car as you instructed. Will Enya be leaving us then?" He asked tentatively.  
  
"Yes," He stated firmly, looking at her, "she will be returning home now."  
  
"Enya," he called to her, "I'll walk you out." He put a protective arm about her shoulder and steered her towards the waiting car. He bent down and spoke into her ear. "I will contact Sloane, explain the situation. I think it's better this way. I have a few things I need to take care of before returning to L.A."  
  
"Why are you having me go?"  
  
"Because this no longer concerns you." He said flatly.  
  
"What if I think I should stay?"  
  
"I won't let you. Korin and I may have reached an agreement for now, but if things don't work out, he will come after you. I need to take precautions in order to prevent that. It's a fine line, Sydney." He explained. "I have to think long term. Korin has many contacts. He can either be very useful or very deadly."  
  
"What if you need back-up?"  
  
Sark smiled at that. "Sydney, I don't need you to protect me. Not to mention, Korin would never consider working with a woman."  
  
"What? Because I'm a woman? That's why you don't want me here? Are you kidding me?" She exclaimed.  
  
"Be serious, Sydney, that's Korin's deal. No, I don't want you here because you're you. I have to let you go now." He whispered. "I can't protect you if I don't."  
  
"Protect me?" She repeated.  
  
This all felt very wrong.  
  
"I want the truth." She demanded, stopping in mid step.  
  
"The truth?" He repeated wistfully, smiling slightly, and he seemed to hesitate. Looking into her eyes, she felt as if he were about to tell her something but then he seemed to think better of it and instead took something out of his pocket and discreetly placed it into her hand, closing her fingers around it.  
  
It was the necklace.  
  
"You could of just asked me for it," he teased lightly.  
  
She looked away, startled. She didn't know what to say.  
  
"You're going to have to learn to trust me." He told her. "I know what I'm doing."  
  
She knew he wasn't telling her everything. But she could also see he wasn't going to. He opened her car door.  
  
"The disk," she reminded him, soberly.  
  
"Oh. Right. I'd nearly forgotten." He joked. Glancing around he noticed Maurice and his staff still patiently waiting for him a short distance away. "I put it away," he eyed her playfully, "you'll have to get it."  
  
Taking her decisively by the waist, he moved in quickly and captured her mouth with his. She started to put her hands up to stop him but he only pulled her in tighter, deepening the kiss. His mouth felt warm and possessive on hers. She could feel her senses warming responsively slow and steady to his touch and she became irritated at herself for enjoying the weight of him pressed against her. He reached for her hand and slid it up in between them leading her to his breast pocket. She pulled the disk out just as he pulled away. He straightened up and stepped back from her then. He had a small thoughtful smile on his face as he considered her a moment. He brought his hand up and took a lock of her hair that had fallen into her face and he replaced it behind her ear.  
  
"It was nice working with you." He said seriously.  
  
Taking her hand, he ushered her into the back of the limousine and shut the door behind her. She watched from inside as he turned and walked back into the Davincci without another word or glancing back.  
  
************************ 


	10. chapter 10

Chapter 10  
  
It felt good to be back in L.A. It was a beautiful day and one of the first things Sydney did waking up the next afternoon was to go for a long run in the park. It felt good to stretch her legs after so many days cooped up. She'd made the dead drop on her way home last night as instructed and didn't expect to hear from Vaughn for at least a day or two. So it surprised her then when she noticed him jogging up behind her. She started to smile until she noticed the grave expression in his eyes.  
  
"Hey." He said as he came up along side her.  
  
"Hey," she answered. "What's up?"  
  
"I tried to get you at home, but you were gone. So I contacted Will and he told me where I could find you. I guess it could of waited but I kinda felt the need for a run myself so I took a chance." He explained, falling into step with her.  
  
"What's going on?" She asked, concerned.  
  
"It's about the disk."  
  
"What about it?"  
  
"The disk you sent us, it was the one you originally copied from Korin's safe?"  
  
"You know it is, Vaughn. What's wrong?" She asked.  
  
"I sent it up to Langley for analysis. They just sent it back. It was blank. It'd never been used." He informed her, making a peripheral check around them.  
  
"What? How can that - Sark." She realized, stating the obvious. She shook her head. "I should have anticipated this."  
  
Vaughn only nodded.  
  
'I really should have anticipated this,' she chastised herself again, feeling ill. 'It was the obvious conclusion. How could I have trusted him to just give it to me?' She thought. 'Because I didn't have the choice,' she remembered, 'he took that choice away from me by convincing me it was to protect me.... He manipulated me - again. Damn.' She raged inside. Secretly, she hadn't been able to stop thinking about how he'd held her so protectively in his arms. When she concentrated she could still imagine the weight of him on top of her. 'The way he looked at me...' she thought, feeling unreasonably hurt. Despite everything she'd felt sure they'd connected somehow. Now it was obvious he'd done that intentionally. And it had worked. She had trusted him, even when she knew better. Reality sucks.  
  
"So...you didn't know." He affirmed, breaking into her thoughts.  
  
"No, Vaughn, what are you saying?"  
  
"Nothing. No. It's just that you spent a lot of time with Sark, for the first time really..." He trailed off.  
  
"Don't go there." She warned him, feeling warm.  
  
"Okay. I won't."  
  
"You told me to go along with him." She countered, trying to make sense of it.  
  
"I know what I told you. I'm just saying -  
  
"Yeah, well, don't." She snapped, irritably.  
  
They continued running at a steady pace for a minute or two while Sydney thought it out.  
  
"I'm sorry." She apologized then, shaking her head angrily. "I'll go after him. I'll get it back." She promised.  
  
"No. I don't want you to do that." He said firmly.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"I have a bad feeling about it, that's all. I think we need to take a step back, get some perspective." He explained.  
  
"Don't patronize me."  
  
"I'm not. I just think we should cut our losses on this one. You said so yourself, Sark's a dangerous man. The more I learn about him, the more I'm convinced. The necklace was a big mistake Syd, it's gonna cost us."  
  
"He doesn't know where it came from. And Vaughn," she reminded him, "he gave it back to me. You're safe."  
  
He rolled his eyes. "It's not me I'm worried about."  
  
"If he wanted to turn me in, he would have by now." She pointed out.  
  
"Unless he still has use for you. Are you sure you're not just looking for a reason to get into it with him again? Because we saw what happened the last time you did that," he chided her.  
  
"That was out of line."  
  
"Maybe." He admitted.  
  
"So what do you want me to do?" She sighed.  
  
"Nothing." He stressed. "For once Syd, I'm asking you to do nothing." Taking a final glance around them, he picked up speed and made his way off down a separate path.  
  
Vaughn was probably right, she realized. She should take this slow, think it through. But then, Sark had lied to her. He had asked her to trust him and then he'd lied to her. She couldn't just let that go. Despite what Vaughn had said, she soon found herself turning around.  
  
As soon as she was dressed again, she headed over to SD-6. She felt sure Sark would be back by now.  
  
***********************  
  
SD-6 Headquarters~  
  
He saw her coming at him from a distance away. Her eyes bore down on him from across the room as she made her way over. She was obviously worked up about something. 'She looks her best when she's worked up,' he smiled to himself. He'd been wondering when she'd show up.  
  
He dismissed the technician he was working with and waited for her to come to him.  
  
"Agent Bristow," he addressed her professionally, "what can I do for you?"  
  
"You double-crossed me," she hissed.  
  
Frowning, he quickly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her into a nearby empty corridor. He pulled out a small box and pressed a button. "Okay, now, you were saying?" He prompted.  
  
"You double-crossed me Sark." She accused him.  
  
"I did nothing of the kind."  
  
"You switched the disk."  
  
"Oh. That. Yes, I did." He responded. "But I didn't double-cross you Sydney. This might not have occurred to you but unlike some people around here I am not under the impression I work for the CIA." He looked at her pointedly.  
  
"You misled me," She said, ignoring the reference, hoping he wouldn't press her on exactly how she felt misled.  
  
"I did my job, just like you. I said I would protect you and that's what I've done." He responded carefully, trying to read her.  
  
"How have you protected me? By lying to me?" she demanded incredulously.  
  
"Yes, in a way. Sydney, you can't succeed all the time, it's suspicious. Certainly in this case, working with me, there was no way I wouldn't have put it together." Strangely, she realized, he wasn't boasting.  
  
She glared at him.  
  
"Don't pout." He patronized. "There was no reason you should have gotten that information. You didn't even know what it was. You didn't even know what it was for. Don't be so damn shortsighted, Sydney. You're smarter than that."  
  
"You know, honestly, I don't get it." He continued. "To have you take such a risk, going up against me, for something they couldn't possibly know what to do with.... Why do you let them just give you away like that?" He asked, looking quickly around, then he whispered, "I would never give you away. Not for anything."  
  
He was so close to her now, she could feel his warmth filling her. "You're trying to confuse me. It won't work." She insisted, moving back.  
  
"Sydney, like you, I am very good at what I do. My missions do not fail. That is why Sloane is working with me. If I did, he would know I had allowed it to happen. He would consider that a betrayal, as would I. At which point I can assure you I would no longer be in a position to pick up after you." He snapped.  
  
"That is not your job." She informed him, recovering her pride. "We covered this. You and I are not friends. We are not going to become friends."  
  
"Yes," he sighed, looking away, "we covered this."  
  
A lengthy, uncomfortable silence followed. Oddly, neither of them felt the inclination to move away. His eyes roamed the length of her body. He noted the stiff black suit, her hair pulled tightly back. The make-up. The set jaw.  
  
"You look rather severe today. That suit - very all buttoned up." He commented, baiting her.  
  
She looked down at herself. "What would you suggest I wear?" She said sarcastically, rising to it. "I'm at work."  
  
"Well," he smiled mischievously, leaning in intimately. "I thought you looked amazing in my shirt."  
  
He'd caught her off guard. She looked away, embarrassed. Slowly the corners of her mouth began to twitch upwards. She shook her head. "You frustrate me."  
  
"You frustrate me." He shot back, irritably.  
  
Sloane walked up behind him just then. He was smiling. Sydney's eyes went up and she smiled back at him, signaling Sark. He caught it. He straightened and turned just as Sloane arrived.  
  
"Congratulations Sark, Sydney." He addressed them. "Good work in Austria. I'm very pleased with what you were able to uncover. Mr. Sark, I wanted to catch you before you left, I need to see you in my office a minute before you go." He said.  
  
"Yes, of course. I'll be right there."  
  
But he didn't move.  
  
Sydney waited for Sloane to walk away before turning back to Sark. "What about the girl?" She asked quickly.  
  
"She's gone. She'll be fine." He said quietly.  
  
"What did you do to her?"  
  
He rolled his eyes. "I didn't do anything to her. For God's sake Sydney, what you must think of me. I've provided for her. I took her to live with a family I know. They'll take good care of her." He assured her. "They're good people."  
  
"I wasn't aware you knew any good people." She snorted.  
  
"Well, actually, I don't." He looked sideways at her and chuckled. "They're friends of your mother's." He confided.  
  
"So you'll be leaving," she asked tentatively, a moment later.  
  
"For awhile. Why, will you miss me?" He teased.  
  
"Mr. Sark?" Sloane called to him from his office.  
  
"Yes, I'm coming." He answered, moving to go.  
  
Sydney grabbed his arm to hold him back. "I won't let you roll me Sark." She warned.  
  
"Oh Sydney," He smiled, walking away from her, "it wouldn't be any fun if you did."  
  
********  
  
Sloane's office~  
  
Sloane is at his desk and Sark is sitting across from him.  
  
"I know you don't have much time before you leave but I wanted to discuss the upcoming mission along the Liberian border to recover the jewel." Sloane handed him the file.  
  
"Sierra Leone, the Kailahun District," Sark corrected. "Dangerous territory these days." He commented idly, opening the file.  
  
"Yes, it can't be helped. I expect that won't be a problem for you?"  
  
"No, that won't be a problem. But it will take significant planning." Sark predicted.  
  
"We have several field agents that are quite good, proficient in the language. I could make them available to you..." Sloane offered. "But I'm guessing you'll want Sydney. The two of you work well together." He commented, watching him, "I must say, I was surprised."  
  
Sark looked up briefly. "Yes, I suppose." He answered distractedly. Scanning one page in particular he remarked, "The Kailahun district is still partially controlled by the RUF rebels. An extremely violent group, very unpredictable."  
  
"Yes, they are." Sloane agreed, looking to see his point.  
  
Sark thought it over. "No, I won't be using Sydney for this." He said decidedly. "I'll need someone with different skills. Although I would like her kept in reserve in case we run into trouble. Just until I get back."  
  
"I'm sure that could be arranged." Sloane agreed, taken aback. He'd felt sure Sydney would be his first choice. "Then I'll go ahead and forward the agents' profiles to your station before you leave. Perhaps you can look them over while you're away." He suggested.  
  
Sark nodded, closing the file.  
  
"Austria was a phenomenal success. Once again, Mr. Sark, you surpass my expectations." He smiled. "The film you brought back will be very useful in the upcoming election months. The General's brother has been rising in popularity despite all odds. Until now, no one's been able to touch him." He smiled. "Did you know the Slovak brothers were actually fraternal twins? It's a little known fact, it's hardly mentioned because it's a common trait in the region they were born."  
  
A conspiratorial look passed between them.  
  
Sark smirked. "Actually, I did know that."  
  
"Where is the girl now?" Sloane asked suddenly.  
  
"I don't know exactly. Probably in an orphanage somewhere. It shouldn't matter, we won't need her."  
  
"No," Sloane reflected, "probably not. Well, Mr. Sark, it looks like you're proving to be more useful to us than we'd anticipated. I think that's it. I'll see you when you get back."  
  
************************  
  
Sark went back to his station and collected his files in preparation to go. He would have a lot of work in the coming weeks. He looked forward to it. Things were beginning to come together as planned.  
  
The end. ************************ 


End file.
